Danish Art

Danish art is exhibited in museums and art galleries all around Denmark. The most famous Danish artists, painters and sculptors have their creative and beautiful artwork exhibited in other countries.

The Skagen painters

The Skagen painters are some of the most famous and admired Danish painters. The Skagen painters are known for their portraying of people, the famous Skagen light and beautiful natural surroundings around Skagen in the late 1800s. Skagen is situated at the Northern tip of Denmark.

P.S. Krøyer is probably the most famous of the Skagen painters. Other famous Skagen painters include Laurits Tuxen, the married couple Michael and Anna Ancher and the norwegian painter Christian Krohg. You can find Skagen paintings at Skagens Museum and at Den Hirshsprungske Samling.

Other famous Danish painters (1800-2010)

The first internationally known Danish painters were the Golden Age painters. Their paintings are mainly from 1800 to 1850. Some of the best known Danish Golden Age painters are Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, Constantin Hansen and Wilhelm Hammershøi.

Other Famous more recent late Danish painters include Asger Jorn, Ejler Bille, Wilhelm Freddie, Egil Jacobsen, Oluf Høst, Carl-Henning Pedersen and Bjørn Winblad.

Famous contemporary Danish painters

Denmark has a lot of excellent contemporary painters and sculptors. One of the most famous contemporary artists is the portrait painter Thomas Kluge. Thomas Kluge has painted many fantastically detailed and beautiful portraits including a portrait of Her Majesty the Queen Margrethe II of Denmark. The Queen is actually an famous painter herself.

Other excellent and admired contemporary Danish painters include Peter Brandes, Per Kirkeby, Michael Kvium, Lise Malinovsky, Lars Nørgård, Bjørn Wiinblad and the painter and sculptor Kurt Trampedach.

Bertel Thorvaldsen and other famous Danish sculptors

The best known Danish sculptor is Bertel Thorvaldsen. Bertel Thorvaldsen's famous sculptures can be found in cities all around Europe. Some of the most famous sculptures include the Christ sculpture in the Church of Our Lady (Vor Frue Kirke) in Copenhagen, Maximilian I of Bavaria in Münich and the monument of Prince Józef Poniatowski in front of the presidential palace in Warsaw.

However the most famous of Bertel Thorvaldsen's many works and sculptures is probably the monument for Pope Pius XII in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Bertel Thorvaldsen's is the only non-Catholic artist who have achieved the honour of having a monument in the Basilica. In Copenhagen you can visit the Thorvaldsen Museum and see many beautiful Thorvaldsen works.

Edvard Erichsen is also a famous Danish sculptor. He is primarily known for the sculpture of The Little Mermaid, which has become a trademark for Copenhagen. Other famous Danish sculptors include Robert Jacobsen and the contemporary artists Jørgen Haugen Sørensen and Bjørn Nørgaard.

Other artworks

Denmark also has many other artists, photographers. stained glass artists, potters and glassblowers who create new works every day.

Visit Danish museums and art galleries

To enjoy the rich world of Danish art, you should visit some of the major Danish museums and local art galleries. When you visit Danish companies, you will often find paintings and other artworks by local artists on display in offices, meeting rooms and hallways.