Benjamin Blessum (November 4, 1877 – October 4, 1954) was an American painter, graphic artist and illustrator. He was primarily known for his Norwegian landscapes.

Background

Ben Blessum was born in Marstein,

Romsdalen Romsdalen is a valley in the western part of Norway. The long valley runs through Rauma Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county and Lesja Municipality in Innlandet county. It is the valley of the Rauma river, from Old Norse word ''Raumsdalr'' ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. He was the son of shoemaker Johan Blessum and Marit Trøen from

Vågå Vågå () is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vågåmo. Other village areas in Vågå include Lalm and Besshe ...

Gudbrandsdal Gudbrandsdalen (; en, Gudbrand Valley) is a valley and traditional district in the Norwegian county of Innlandet (formerly Oppland). The valley is oriented in a north-westerly direction from Lillehammer and the lake of Mjøsa, extending toward ...

. His family emigrated from

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...

in 1888 to Menominee, Wisconsin when he was 11 years old. He also lived in

Eau Claire, Wisconsin Eau Claire (; ) (French for "clear water") is a city mostly located in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, of which it is the county seat, and with a small portion in Chippewa County, Wisconsin. It had a population of 69,421 in 2020, making it the state' ...

, where his father worked in the lumber mills. In 1896, he moved to

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, where he attended the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mil ...

, worked as a commercial artist and for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

'' as an illustrator, and was involved in the

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

Career

In 1905, Blessum was selected to design and illustrate a publication marking the coronation of

Haakon VII of Norway Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick VI ...

. In 1913, he was commissioned to design and execute a painting to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Norwegian Constitution. He painted '' The Departure of the Restauration'' now located at the Norwegian Emigrant Museum in

Hamar Hamar is a town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the traditional region of Hedmarken. The town is located on the shores of Mjøsa, Norway's largest lake ...

. In 1916, he lived in

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label= Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. The name “S ...

, painting for the

Santa Fe Railroad The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and S ...

. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Blessum served as a representative to the American Committee on Public Information in Norway and acted in the same capacity for the

United States War Department The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, a ...

. Blessum was a member of the

Chicago Norske Klub Chicago Norske Klub (1911 to 1971) was a Chicago, Illinois based Norwegian-American cultural and social organization. Background Chicago Norske Klub was founded in 1911 through the merger of two prior organizations which had dated to 1890, the Norw ...

and

Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Art {{No footnotes, date=January 2022 The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Art is an association of representational artists, founded in Chicago in 1895. Palette & Chisel is the second oldest artist organization in the United States. Founding As the ...

both in Chicago. Blessum exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago. Exhibitions of his works were held at the Chicago Norske Klub Annual Art Exhibit and the

Norse-American Centennial The Norse-American Centennial celebration was held at the Minnesota State Fair on June 6–9, 1925. Description The event served to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the arrival during 1825 of the Norwegian immigrant ship '' Restauration''. T ...

Art Exhibition at the

Minnesota State Fair The Minnesota State Fair is the state fair of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Also known by its slogan, "The Great Minnesota Get-Together", it is the largest state fair in the United States by average daily attendance and the second-largest state fa ...

. From 1923 to his retirement in 1936, he was the representative for the

Norwegian State Railways Vygruppen, branded as Vy, is a government-owned railway company which operates most passenger train services and many bus services in Norway. The company is owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Transport. Its sub-brands include Vy Buss coach se ...

in New York. Blessum received the

Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

, First Class, bestowed by King

in recognition of his many services to the nation. He served as secretary of the Norwegian National League for over 50 years.

Personal life

Blessum settled in Chicago with his wife, Karen Olsen, whom he married in 1900, and their children, Norman and Dagny. He retired in 1936 and built a home outside of Chicago. Blessum died at

Lake Villa, Illinois Lake Villa is a village in Lake County, Illinois United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 8,741. Lake Villa lies within Lake Villa Township and about 50 miles north of Chicago and is part of the United States Census Bureau's Chicag ...

, at the age of 77.

Selected works

*''Smaa diamanter: udvalgte fortællinger'' (1899) *''What You Can See from the Train in Norway'' (1930) *''Vikingland Vacations Norway'' (1930)

References

Other sources

*Erickson, Rolf H. (1988) ''Ben Blessum, Norwegian-American Artist'' (The Sons of Norway Viking, 85, 10: 408-410) *Haugan, Reidar Rye (1933) ''Prominent Artists and Exhibits of Their Work in Chicago'' (Chicago Norske Klub. Nordmanns-Forbundet, 24: 371—374,Volume 7)

External links

Norway - Summer seasonThe Lands of The VikingsSmaa diamanter : udvalgte fortællinger''The Departure of the Restauration''Smithsonian Institution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blessum, Benjamin 1877 births 1954 deaths People from Møre og Romsdal 19th-century American painters American male painters 20th-century American painters Artists from Chicago Norwegian emigrants to the United States School of the Art Institute of Chicago alumni People from Eau Claire, Wisconsin Artists from Wisconsin Writers from Chicago Writers from Wisconsin Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal People from Lake Villa, Illinois People from Menominee, Wisconsin 19th-century American male artists 20th-century American male artists