Art of the Faroe Islands
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In the Faroe Islands painting only really took off in the early mid-20th century. Even so, the islands have a very active art scene. Well-known Faroese artists include Sámuel Joensen-Mikines, Ingálvur av Reyni, Ruth Smith, Janus Kamban, Steffan Danielsen, Tróndur Patursson, Hans Pauli Olsen and Zacharias Heinesen among others.
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[edit] The Pioneers
The first paintings ever made in the Faroes where by Díðrikur í Kárastovu, more commonly known as Díðrikur á Skarvanesi (1802-1865), due to the fact that he lived his whole life in the tiny secluded village Skarvanes on the island Sandoy. His subjects where real and imaginary birds in vivid colours. Five of his paintings have been preserved, and are a part of the permenent exhibition in the Faroese art museum, Listaskálin. One if his better paintings is entitled Moon Doves.
Niels Kruse (1871-1951) was the first Faroese landscape painter, a theme which was to become a significance of Faroese art. Kruse lived in the village Eiði on the island Eysturoy. Kruse was completely self-taught, but had received some help from an American traveller, who stayed in the Faroes during the first world war. In 1924 one of his works was accepted by a gallery in Denmark. This was the very first time a painter had succeeded outside of the Islands. Kruse was also the first painter on the Faroes who managed to make a living from his art.
Other painters from his generation where Kristin í Geil and Jógvan Waagstein both from the Faroese capital Tórshavn. They where both self-taught landscape painters. It is believed that í Geil received schooling from Kruse. These two latter, however, never made their living exclusively from painting.
These painters where all pioneers in the field of visual art in the Faroes, and they where the first to make their fellow countrymen aware of the art of painting.
[edit] The beginning
The real history of Faroese art starts in the year 1927. This year three young artist held an exhibition in Tórshavn. These artists where Sámal Joensen-Mikines (1906-1979), William Heinesen (1900-1990) and Jákup Olsen (1902-1963). The first, Mikines, came to be known as the father of Faroese art, and the first Faroese artist to become internationally recognised. Mikines was an expressive figurative painter. He had his education at the Royal Academy of Art in Copenhagen. Mikines was artistically highly inspired by the Norwegian artist Edward Munch, and had a great admiration for El Greco and Delacroix. His early paintings are naturalistic, but later he became very original in his choice of colour and design. Some of his greatest works are psychologically very suggestive. In his paintings Mikines always turns to the Faroes for themes. He painted funerals, steep mountains, landscapes and the dramatic grindadráp, which is whaling in the Faroe Islands, where men battle with whales. Through his artistic interpretation of life around him Mikines appealed to the Faroese, and their interest in art was born.
Although Mikines was a huge inspiration there hasn’t been much imitation. Except for a close affinity with the landscape and culture of the Faroe Islands, there has always been great diversity in Faroese art. In the 20th century, Modernism had a great impact upon art. Genres where working toward a pure expression in every field. But the youth of the Faroese art scene ment that such rebellion was never needed. The landscape became the national theme in Faroese painting. The landscape painters experimented with differnt methods, such as shape, composition and colour. It has ben said that, each individual landscape came to represent Faroese nature.
[edit] Other pioneers
Mikines wasn´t the only one from his generation who received his formal training in Copenhagen. Others who followed where the classical modernist Janus Kamban (b. 1913), the colourist Ruth Smith (1913-1958) and the great abstract painter Ingálvur av Reyni (1920-2005), who is ranked as one of the great modernists in Scandinavia.
The first, Kamban, was the first Faroese sculptor. In style he ranges from the stricly naturalistic to the classically simple. His subjects are usually people, and he uses clay, bronze and basaltic rock for his sculptures. As a graphic artist Kamban mostly portays the Faroese landscape.
The second, Smith, was one of the most talented Faroese artists. Her subjects where scenery and faces. She worked very consciously with colour. Over a period of twenty years she painted numerous self-portaits, one has been held as one of the finest portaits in Scandinavian art.
The latter, av Reyni, introduced abstract art to the Faroes. His early works where rather naturalistic landscapes, but in the early 1960´ties he dissolved the romantic and impressionist landscape, when he started to paint more and more abstract. His paintings usually contain a figurative core, which is described by the title of his paintings. As a black-and-white artist, he has drawn many portraits as well as landscapes.
[edit] Faroese mainstreem art of today
Traditional painting is still the main genre in Faroese art. For decades the most common subject to be found in faroese art was the landscape, and today this legacy still exists. However, it is not as dominant as it used to be. Today this particular field ranges from the abstract to the naturalistic, and has been given a modernist style.
Also, the postmodern interest has appeared in Faroese art, just as it has in neighboring countries.
[edit] Art Galleries
There are a couple of art galleries in the capital Tórshavn including the national art museum Listaskálin. But there are also other art galleries on the Faroes. Some are dedicated to local artists, while others have regular exhibitions. Listaskálin has two exhibitions a year that focus exclusively on Faroese artists. The first one is the spring exhibition in May; the second is the annual Saint Olav's Day exhibition in late July. Where the first one exclusively features professional artists, the latter one mainly features amateurs.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- The Faroe Islands National Art Museum - The Faroe Islands National Art Museum
- faroearts - shows and sells the work of Faroese artists
- BryggenArt - Art from the North Atlantic
- FaroeseArt - Færøsk Kunst - Faroese Art exhibitions outside and inside the Faroe Islands (Danish)
- Kári Svensson - painter artist
- GudrunogGudrun - Faroese design
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