Richard Mortensen
Encyclopedia
Richard Mortensen was a Danish painter.
Mortensen studied between 1931 and 1932 at the Royal Danish Academy of Art
in Copenhagen. Influenced by the works of Wassily Kandinsky
, he developed an abstract
style. In Copenhagen, Mortensen was joint founder of the "Linien" school of abstract painters.
In 1937, he undertook a study trip to Paris
, where he met pioneers of surrealism
, such as Roger Vitrac
, Gala Éluard, Michel Leiris
, Antonin Artaud
, Raymond Queneau
and André Masson
. During the Second World War, Mortensen's works reflected the violence of Europe. He moved to Paris in 1947, remaining there until 1964. Together with Robert Jacobsen
, Mortensen became connected to the Galerie Denise René
in Paris, which became famous for concrete art. His later works are concrete works of art characterised by large, clear, bright colour surfaces.
Mortensen was awarded the Edvard Munch
Prize in 1946, and the Kandinsky prize in 1950, and the Thorvaldsen medal in 1968. After his return to Denmark in 1964, he received a Professorship at the Royal Danish Academy of Art in Copenhagen, which he held until 1980.
Mortensen studied between 1931 and 1932 at the Royal Danish Academy of Art
Royal Danish Academy of Art
The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts has provided a practice-oriented complement to the scholarly investigation of the arts carried out at Danish universities for more than 250 years, playing a crucial part in the development of the distinctive tradition of the art of Denmark.- History :The Royal...
in Copenhagen. Influenced by the works of Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky was an influential Russian painter and art theorist. He is credited with painting the first purely-abstract works. Born in Moscow, Kandinsky spent his childhood in Odessa. He enrolled at the University of Moscow, studying law and economics...
, he developed an abstract
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
style. In Copenhagen, Mortensen was joint founder of the "Linien" school of abstract painters.
In 1937, he undertook a study trip to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where he met pioneers of surrealism
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
, such as Roger Vitrac
Roger Vitrac
Roger Vitrac was a French surrealist playwright and poet.Born in Pinsac, Roger Vitrac moved to Paris in 1910. As a young man, he was influenced by symbolism and the writings of Lautréamont and Alfred Jarry, and he developed a passion for theatre and poetry...
, Gala Éluard, Michel Leiris
Michel Leiris
Julien Michel Leiris was a French surrealist writer and ethnographer.-Biography:...
, Antonin Artaud
Antonin Artaud
Antoine Marie Joseph Artaud, more well-known as Antonin Artaud was a French playwright, poet, actor and theatre director...
, Raymond Queneau
Raymond Queneau
Raymond Queneau was a French poet and novelist and the co-founder of Ouvroir de littérature potentielle .-Biography:Born in Le Havre, Seine-Maritime, Queneau was the only child of Auguste Queneau and Joséphine Mignot...
and André Masson
André Masson
André-Aimé-René Masson was a French artist.-Biography:Masson was born in Balagny-sur-Thérain, Oise, but was brought up in Belgium. He began his study of art at the age of eleven in Brussels, at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts under the guidance of Constant Montald, and later he studied in Paris...
. During the Second World War, Mortensen's works reflected the violence of Europe. He moved to Paris in 1947, remaining there until 1964. Together with Robert Jacobsen
Robert Jacobsen
Robert Julius Tommy Jacobsen was a Danish sculptor and painter. The Danish Robert award was named after him.-Biography:...
, Mortensen became connected to the Galerie Denise René
Denise René
Denise René is a French gallerist.In 1955 she organized the exhibition Le Mouvement, which helped to popularize kinetic art.In 2001, the Centre Georges Pompidou paid homage to her with an exhibition titled "Denise René, une galerie dans l'aventure de l'art abstrait. 1944-1978".- External links :*...
in Paris, which became famous for concrete art. His later works are concrete works of art characterised by large, clear, bright colour surfaces.
Mortensen was awarded the Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, printmaker and an important forerunner of expressionist art. His best-known composition, The Scream, is part of a series The Frieze of Life, in which Munch explored the themes of love, fear, death, melancholia, and anxiety.- Childhood :Edvard Munch...
Prize in 1946, and the Kandinsky prize in 1950, and the Thorvaldsen medal in 1968. After his return to Denmark in 1964, he received a Professorship at the Royal Danish Academy of Art in Copenhagen, which he held until 1980.
Sources
- Article at Encyclopædia Britannica
- Richard Mortensen : Erindringens år 1958-1993 I-II Ting og tegn / Jan Würtz Frandsen. ISBN 87-21-01561-9
- Richard Mortensen : l'Oeuvre graphique 1942-1993 / af Jan Würtz Frandsen. 1995. ISBN 87-21-00301-7