Carl Johan Bonnesen (26 May 1868 – 13 December 1933) was a Danish sculptor. He specialised in depictions of animals and exotic, "primitive" subjects as seen in the first sculpture he ever exhibited, ''A Victorious Group of Huns'' from 1889. It was soon followed by ''A Barbarian'' (1891), ''The Period of the Huns'' (1893), ''A Bedouin'' (1897) and ''A Mounted Chinese Warrior'' (1900).

Biography

Bonnesen was born in

Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...

. He trained to become a carpenter for two years before moving to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

where he was admitted to the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

in 1887. There he studied under

Theobald Stein Theobald Stein (7 February 1829 – 16 November 1901) was a Danish sculptor. He was a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and served as its director from 1883 to 1886. Among his most well-known works are the Niels Juel statue ...

and Christian Carl Peters, graduating in 1889. Bonnesen soon had many commissions. In 1891, at the age of 22, his first sculpture was acquired by tobacco manufacturer

Heinrich Hirschsprung Heinrich Hirschsprung (7 February 1836 – 8 November 1908) was a Denmark, Danish tobacco manufacturer, arts patron and art collector most known for founding the The Hirschsprung Collection, Hirschsprung Collection in Copenhagen, a museum dedic ...

and cast in bronze. It is today exhibited in the garden by the

Hirschsprung Collection The Hirschsprung Collection ( Danish: Den Hirschsprungske Samling) is an art museum located on Stockholmsgade in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located in a parkland setting in Østre Anlæg, near the Danish National Gallery, and houses a large coll ...

. His most important patron was

Carl Jacobsen Carl Christian Hillman Jacobsen (2 March 1842 – 11 January 1914) was a Danish brewer, art collector and philanthropist. Though often preoccupied with his cultural interests, Jacobsen was a shrewd and visionary businessman and initiated the tra ...

, founder of Carlsberg Brewery, who among other pieces, ordered ''Thor Driving Across the Arch of the Sky'' (1897). In copper, it stands on top of the Ny Carlsberg Brewhouse. Bonnesen's last great patron was jurist Harald Plum, who had the huge sculpture group ''Thor at War with the Jötunns'' (1891) placed on his private island, Thorø. It now stands by the Haustrup Plast factory on the outskirts of Odense. Other notable works include ''The Period of the Huns'' (1893), ''A Bedouin'' (1897) and ''A Mounted Chinese Warrior'' (1900). Bonnesen travelled extensively during the 1890s. From 1894 to 1895, he stayed in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where he associated with the circle around

Stephan Sinding Stephan Abel Sinding (4 August 1846 – 23 January 1922) was a Norwegian- Danish sculptor. He moved to Copenhagen in 1883 and had his breakthrough the same year. In 1890 he obtained Danish citizenship. In 1910 he settled in Paris where he liv ...

with whom he had more in common than he had with Stein and Peters, his former teachers. In 1898, he went to

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

and

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

and his travels also took him to the United States. Bonnesen had a large and diverse production of statues and statuettes. These include an equestrian statue of King Christian IX which stands on the market place in the centre of Esbjerg, Denmark. Designed in bronze, it was completed in 1899. Other notable works include ''Adam and Eve at the body of Abel'' (1900) and ''Two Lions'' in the Danish National Gallery as well as several statuettes in

The Hirschsprung Collection The Hirschsprung Collection ( Danish: Den Hirschsprungske Samling) is an art museum located on Stockholmsgade in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located in a parkland setting in Østre Anlæg, near the Danish National Gallery, and houses a large coll ...

. Many of Bonnesen's plaster casts have, since 1969, been exhibited in Thingbæk Kalkminer near Rebild Bakker.

List of public statues

* ''A Barbarian'' (1891) - garden of the

, Copenhagen * '' Thor Driving Across the Arch of the Sky'' (1897) - roof of the Ny Carlsberg Brewhouse, Copenhagen * ''Christian IX'' (1899) - Esbjerg, Denmark * ''Diana'' (1908) - Trondhjems Plads, Copenhagen * ''The Music'' (1913) - Wagnersvej, Copenhagen * ''Thor at War with the Jötunns'' (1926) - grounds of Glud & Marstrand, Odense * ''The Mother'' (1932) - Amorparken, Copenhagen

Awards

Eckersberg Medal The Eckersberg Medal (originally the ''Akademiets Aarsmedaille'' or Annual Academy Medal) is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. It is named after Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, known as the father of Danish painting. The ...

, 1900 *

Thorvaldsen Medal The Thorvaldsen Medal (Danish language, Danish: Thorvaldsens Medalje, Thorvaldsen Medaillen) is awarded annually with few exceptions to a varying number of recipients by the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and is its highest distinction within th ...

, 1930

Gallery

File:En barbar by Carl Johan Bonnesen - Copenhagen - DSC07324.JPG, ''A Barbarian'' (1891) Image:Thor sculpture (Ny Carlsberg Bryghus).jpg, ''Thor at War with the Jötunns'' (1901) Image:Diana til Hest.JPG, ''Diana'' (1908) Image:Adam and Eve with the Body of Abel (by Bonnesen).jpg, ''Adam and Eve at the body of Abel''
(1900)

References

Other sources