Oil painting -> List of Painters ->Christen Dalsgaard

Christen Dalsgaard

Early Days: Christen Dalsgaard (October 30, 1824 – February 11, 1907), Danish painter, was born on the Krabbesholm estate on the fjord near Skive, and was son of the estate owner, Jens Dalsgaard. He showed early signs of artistic talent, and received training as a craft painter. In spring 1841 Niels Rademacher, a visiting landscape painter, encouraged the young artist and convinced his parents of their son’s talent.

Career:

In 1855 he painted his first altarpiece at the church in his hometown of Skive. He goes on to paint a number of other altarpieces in the years to come.

He has his big breakthrough in 1856 with the painting "Mormoner på besøg hos en tømrer på landet" ("Mormons visit a country carpenter"). The painting, created only 6 years after the missionary’s arrival in Denmark, is set in the shadowed interior of a provincial cottage. A group of people are gathered around a table, listening to a missionary’s message.

Light filters in through a small window and an open door. It is a study of contemporary daily life, carefully depicting the interior and costumes of the people in detail. The painting was donated to the Danish National Gallery (Statens Museum for Kunst) in 1871.