Hedvig Jacobine Henriette Collin (27 May 1880 – 2 April 1964) was a Danish painter,

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicate ...

and writer. She created both portraits and landscapes but she is remembered above all for illustrating books for children. In addition to her illustrations in many Danish publications for young people, she wrote and illustrated a number of works in English, including ''Two Viking Boys'' (1949) and ''Young Hans Christian Andersen'' (1955).

Biography

Born on 27 May 1880 in

Nakskov Nakskov is a market town on the island of Lolland in south Denmark. The town has a population of 12,200 (1 January 2025) and is the largest town on the island of Lolland. It is located in Lolland municipality in Region Sjælland. Nakskov is situ ...

, Hedvig Jacobine Henriette Collin was the daughter of the photographer (1849–1922) and Ottilia Frederikke Christiane née Bloch (1850–1935). She attended Copenhagen's Arts and Crafts School for Women before becoming a student in the women's section of 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 ...

where she befriended

Karen Blixen Baroness Karen Christentze von Blixen-Finecke (born Dinesen; 17 April 1885 – 7 September 1962) was a Danish author who wrote in Danish and English. She is also known under her pen names Isak Dinesen, used in English-speaking countries; Ta ...

. After graduating from the Academy's decoration school in 1909, she furthered her education at the

École des Beaux-Arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...

in Paris and at the

Kunstgewerbeschule A Kunstgewerbeschule (English: ''School of Arts and Crafts'' or S''chool of Applied Arts'') was a type of vocational arts school that existed in German-speaking countries from the mid-19th century. The term Werkkunstschule was also used for the ...

in Berlin. Taking a general interest in culture and design, during her first trip to Paris in 1904, Collin wrote articles for the magazine '' Vore Damer'', illustrated with her own photographs. In the 1920s and 1930s, she travelled to Italy, Greece, Poland, Germany and England. She spent the years of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the United States. In addition to exhibiting her works in Denmark, she participated in the Salon des humoristes in Paris (). At the end of the war, she held a solo exhibition of her books, illustrations and paintings in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

. Collin is remembered above all for her illustrations. From 1916 to 1922, together with her colleagues, she published the illustrated song books for children in the ''Vore Børnesange'' series. Other illustrated works included the humorous geography of Denmark titled ''Bibi'' (1929) and books she both wrote and illustrated for the American market such as ''Two Viking Boys'' (1949) and ''Young Hans Christian Andersen'' (1955). She was also active designing a multitude of postcards from 1907 to 1931. Hedvig Collin died in

Lyngby Kongens Lyngby (, Danish language, Danish for "the King's Heather Town"; short form Lyngby) is the seat and commercial centre of Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Lyngby Hovedgade is a busy shopping stre ...

on 2 April 1964 and is buried in

Søllerød Søllerød is a suburban district of Rudersdal Municipality in the northern outskirts of Copenhagen, Denmark. The original village, one of the oldest in the area, is perched on Søllerød Hill on the south side of Søllerød Lake. It merged with ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collin, Hedvig 1880 births 1964 deaths People from Nakskov 20th-century Danish painters 20th-century Danish women artists Danish children's writers Danish women writers 20th-century Danish illustrators Danish women illustrators Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni

Hedvig Hedvig is a given name of German origin, derived from ''hadu'' ("battle, combat") and ''wig'' ("fight, duel"). Notable people with the name include: People *Hedvig Catharina De la Gardie (1732–1800), Swedish noblewoman of French descent *Hedvig ...