Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Syberg, generally known as Fritz Syberg, (28 July 1862,

Fåborg Faaborg or Fåborg () is an old port town located on Faaborg Fjord in Faaborg-Midtfyn municipality on the island of Funen in Denmark. By road, Faaborg is located southwest of Odense, west-northwest of Svendborg, and roughly southeast of ...

– 20 December 1939,

Kerteminde Kerteminde (nickname: ''Min Amandas by'', i.e. ''My Amanda's town''), is a town in central Denmark, located in Kerteminde Municipality on the island of Funen. The town has a population of 6,042 (1 January 2022).

) was a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

painter and illustrator, one of the or

Funen Painters The Funen Painters or ''Fynboerne'' were a loose group of Danish artists who formed an art colony on the island of Funen at the very beginning of the 20th century. They were strongly influenced by Kristian Zahrtmann who taught at the Artists Stud ...

(''Fynboerne'') living and working on the island of

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as o ...

Biography

Syberg, from a poor background in Fåborg, first served a house painter's apprenticeship under Syrak Hansen, the father of fellow artist Peter Hansen before attending the Copenhagen Technical School in 1882 where

Holger Grønvold Holger may refer to: People * Holger (given name), includes name origin, plus people with the name * Hilde Holger, stage name of dancer, choreographer and dance teacher Hilde Boman-Behram (née Hilde Sofer, 1905–2001) Fictional characters * H ...

taught him drawing. After a short period at the

Danish Academy Danish Academy is an independent organisation founded in 1960 by a circle of Danish intellectuals "to promote Danish esprit and language, especially within the field of literature". It has up to 20 members, currently 18, and is based at Rungsted ...

(spring 1884), he attended the Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler (1885–1891) where he was the first of the Fynboerne to study under

Kristian Zahrtmann Peder Henrik Kristian Zahrtmann, known as Kristian Zahrtmann, (31 March 1843 – 22 June 1917) was a Danish painter. He was a part of the Danish artistic generation in the late 19th century, along with Peder Severin Krøyer and Theodor Esbern Phi ...

. His travels included Sweden (1899) where he visited

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 ...

, Germany (1902), Italy (1905) together with

Jens Birkholm Jens Birkholm (21 November 1869 – 11 May 1915) was a Danish genre painter associated with the group known as the Funen Painters. Biography Birkholm was born in and died in Faaborg. His father was a Sailing Master.

, the Netherlands and Paris (1908) and

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the ...

(1910–1913). Syberg married Syrak Hansen's daughter Anna in 1894 and, after her death in 1914, he married her sister Marie in 1915. He was the father of artist

Ernst Syberg Ernst Axel Syberg (12 January 1906 – 17 August 1981) was a Danish painter who in the early 1930s associated with the artists' colony in northwestern Zealand known as the Odsherred Painters. From 1934, he was a member of Corner where he exhibi ...

and composer

Franz Syberg Franz Adolf Syberg (5 July 1904 - 11 December 1955) was a Danish composer. Life Syberg was born in Kerteminde, Funen, to the painters Anna and Fritz Syberg. He moved to Leipzig in 1922 where he studied musical composition and music theory a ...

Artistic career

Together with

Poul S. Christiansen Poul Simon Christiansen, frequently referred to as Poul S. Christiansen (20 October 1855, Rolfsted, Funen – 14 November 1933, Copenhagen) was a Danish painter who developed a Colourist style under Kristian Zahrtmann and as a result of his appre ...

and Peter Hansen, Syberg was one of the first Funen artists to study under Zahrtmann who had broken away from the traditions of the

to venture into Naturalism and Realism. Initially he was influenced by Zahrtmann's colourist approach which can be seen in ''Dødsfald'' (1892) depicting his mother's death in Fåborg's poorhouse 14 years earlier. After marrying Hansen's sister, the painter

Anna Syberg Anna Louise Birgitte Syberg (7 January 1870 – 4 July 1914) was a Danish painter. Together with her husband Fritz Syberg, she was one of the Funen Painters (''Fynboerne'') who lived and worked on the island of Funen. She is remembered for ...

, his works became brighter as evidenced by his landscapes and the 18 large drawings he completed in 1895 to 1898 to illustrate

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consist ...

's '' The Story of a Mother'', now considered to be among Denmark's finest drawings. Thereafter, his oils include ''Dødens komme'' (1906) and ''Døden ved vuggen'' (1907) and landscapes depicting scenes from Funen, first around

Dyreborg Erik Birger Dyreborg (né Poulsen) (20 January 1940 – 12 November 2013), was a Danish footballer who played as a striker. He scored eight goals in his six matches for the Danish national team, before he became professional with Boston Beacons ...

and Svanninge such as ''Forår'' (1893) and ''Aftenleg i Svanninge Bakker'' (1900) and later the area west of

where his garden and children were the main subjects. Quite early in his career, Syberg began to paint watercolours but it was during his three-year stay in Pisa with his family that he completed a whole series of watercolours adopting a style that was new to Danish art. But shortly after he returned to Denmark, on the occasion of his daughter Besse's marriage to

Harald Giersing Harald Giersing (24 April 1881 – 15 January 1927) was a Danish painter. He was instrumental in developing the classic modernism movement in Denmark around 1910-1920. He is remembered as one of Denmark's most important 20th-century artists both f ...

, Syberg came into contact with the younger generation of Danish artists, resulting in an increasingly

Modernist Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

approach and a return to oils as in ''Overkærby Bakke. Vinter'' (1917). His son

also became an artist.

Selected works

Syberg Jeg vil synge dem alle, alle!, sagde Moderen 1898

*''Rugmark ved Svanninge'' (1887) *''Dødsfald'' (1892) *''Forår'' (1893) *''Historien om en moder'' (18 drawings, 1895–1898) *''Aftenlegg i Svanninge Bakker'' (1900) *''Børnene på Fyns Hoved'' (1905) *''Mor og datter ved Hverringe Strand'' (1906) *''Dødens komme'' (1906) *''Døden ved vuggen'' (1907) *''Sommerhytterne. Korshavn'' (1910) *''Efter badet, Italien'' (1911) *''Overkarby Bakke. Vinter'' (1917) *''Ved Morgenkaffen'' (1919) *''Komponisten'' (1936)

Gallery

File:Syberg Dødsfald 1892.jpg, Fritz Syberg: ''Dødsfald'' (1892) File:Syberg Aftenleg i Svanninge Bakker 1900.jpg, Fritz Syberg: ''Aftenleg i Svanninge Bakker'' (1900) File:Syberg Børnene på Fyns Hoved 1905.jpg, Fritz Syberg: ''Børnene på Fyns Hoved'' (1905) File:Syberg Overkærby Bakke. Vinter 1917.jpg, Fritz Syberg ''Overkærby Bakke. Vinter'' (1917)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Syberg, Fritz 19th-century Danish painters Danish male painters 20th-century Danish painters 19th-century Danish illustrators 1862 births 1939 deaths People from Faaborg-Midtfyn Municipality Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Recipients of the Thorvaldsen Medal 19th-century Danish male artists 20th-century Danish male artists

Biography

Artistic career

Selected works

Gallery

See also

References