Christine Swane née Christine Larsen (29 May 1876 in Kerteminde – 16 August 1960 in Farum) was a Danish painter who first associated with the Funen Painters before developing her own increasingly Cubist style.

Biography

Christine Swane was the sister of

Johannes Larsen Johannes Larsen (27 December 1867 – 20 December 1961) was a Danish nature painter. Biography Larsen was born in Kerteminde on Funen, Denmark. He was the son of Jeppe Andreas L. and Vilhelmine Christine Bless. His father was a merchant. Lar ...

, one of the key members of the Funen Painters (''Fynboerne''), with whom she associated while young. She adopted their Naturalistic approach and strong use of colour as evidenced by her early flower paintings. After studying at the Danish Academy (1898–1901) under

Viggo Johansen Viggo Johansen (3 January 1851 – 18 December 1935) was a Danish painter and active member of the group of Skagen Painters who met every summer in the north of Jutland Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische H ...

, she was instructed by Jens Ferdinand Willumsen, Fritz Syberg and Harald Giersing. Around 1910, she met Karl Isakson and Sigurd Swane who introduced her to contemporary French art. Her marriage with Swane ended in 1920 when they were divorced. Their son, Lars Swane (1913–2002), was also a successful artist.

Artwork

Inspired by French trends, particularly

Henri Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual arts, visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, ...

, her earlier still lifes often depict indoor scenes or window sills with strong attention to detail. She slowly developed her own style creating more decorative, geometrical works with Cubist associations and thin transparent colouring, dominated by cool yellows, blues and greens. Over the years, she became an ever more sensitive Colourist, benefitting from her travels to France, the Netherlands, Belgium and England (1938), Italy (1957) and frequent trips to Sweden and Norway. Her stays on

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

and in her summer house in the north of Jutland also influenced her style.Monika C. Blatschek, "Christine Swane (1876 - 1960)"
''Dansk Kvindebiografisk Leksikon''. Retrieved 31 August 2011. In addition to still lifes, she painted portraits, landscapes and forest scenes. One of her most notable works is the mosaic depicting female gymnasts at the women's baths in

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the region of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of less tha ...

(1951) in a flat, geometrical style. Her interest in ceramics, possibly influenced by Willumsen, also developed considerably over the years as did her sculpture and needlework. From 1937, she exhibited her paintings with the Grønningen cooperative. In 1943, she was awarded the

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 ...

References

External links

ArtNet: Paintings by Christine Swane.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swane, Christine 1876 births 1960 deaths 19th-century Danish painters 20th-century Danish painters People from Kerteminde Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal 20th-century Danish artists 20th-century Danish women painters 19th-century Danish women painters