Inger Solveig Sitter (18 October 1929 – 11 March 2015) was a Norwegian painter, graphic artist and art instructor.

Personal life

Sitter was born in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

to Ingvar Sitter and Ebba Pelander. She grew up partly on her father's ships, which sailed in European and other waters, and partly with her mother in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, where she went to primary school.

Career

Sitter studied at the

Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts The Norwegian National Academy of Arts () was a former Norwegian tertiary institution in Oslo, offering studies in the area of fine art. Along with four other academies, it merged to form the Oslo National Academy of the Arts (, KHiO) in 1996. ...

at Oslo under

Per Krohg Per Lasson Krohg (18 June 1889 – 3 March 1965) was a Norwegian visual artist and teacher. He is best known for the mural he created for the United Nations Security Council Chamber, located in the United Nations headquarters in New York City. ...

Axel Revold Axel Revold (24 December 1887 – 11 April 1962) was a Norwegian painter, illustrator, and art professor at the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts for twenty years. He was highly decorated for his merits. Personal life Revold was bo ...

and

Jean Heiberg Jean Hjalmar Dahl Heiberg (19 December 1884 – 27 May 1976) was a Norwegian painter, sculptor, designer and art professor. Personal life Heiberg was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. He was the son of Hjalmar Heiberg (1837–97) and Jea ...

from 1945 to 1946. She trained at the Institut Supérieur des Beaux Arts in Antwerp from 1946 to 1950. She was a student of

André Lhote André Lhote (5 July 1885 – 24 January 1962) was a French Cubist painter of figure subjects, portraits, landscapes, and still life. He was also active and influential as a teacher and writer on art. Early life and education Lhote was bor ...

during 1948 and with

Stanley William Hayter Stanley William Hayter (27 December 1901 – 4 May 1988) was an English painter and master printmaker associated in the 1930s with surrealism and from 1940 onward with abstract expressionism. Regarded as one of the most significant printmakers ...

1954-55 and 1956–57. She conducted various study trips to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

The Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

between 1947 and 1962. She was the recipient of numerous awards including Schäffers legat (1951), Ragnhild Keysers legat (1952), Helga og Hans Reusch' legat (1953), Fransk statsstipend (1956-57), Ragnar Moltzaus legat (1957), Hans Evensens legat (1960) and Th. Fearnleys Minnestipend (1961). During her working career she settled in various countries, mostly in Norway, Italy and France. She was a resident in

1947–50. She was a board member of Unge Kunstneres Samfund from 1952 to 1954, board member of Norske Grafikere from 1955 to 1958, and member of the

Arts Council Norway The Arts Council Norway (, often shortened to ''Kulturrådet'') is the official arts council for Norway. Based in Oslo, it is a Norwegian state institution created in as a result of a parliamentary decision in 1964. Arts Council Norway's admini ...

from 1964 to 1968. She was appointed professor at the

from 1981 to 1984. Among her works are wall decorations of the

Government building Government Buildings () is a large Edwardian building enclosing a quadrangle on Merrion Street in Dublin, Ireland, in which several key offices of the Government of Ireland are located. Among the offices of State located in the building are: *D ...

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

from the 1950s (in cooperation with her husband Nesjar and other artists). Her works are included in the permanent collections of several museums, including the

National Gallery of Norway The National Gallery () is a gallery in Oslo, Norway. Since 2003 it is administratively a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design. History It was established in 1842 following a parliamentary decision from 1836. Originally lo ...

and

Henie-Onstad Art Centre The Henie Onstad Kunstsenter is an art museum located at Høvikodden in Bærum municipality in Akershus, Akershus county, Norway. It is situated on a headland jutting into the Oslofjord, approximately southwest of Oslo. History The artcentre ...

in Oslo, at

Moderna Museet Moderna Museet is a state museum for modern and contemporary art located on the island of Skeppsholmen in central Stockholm, opened in 1958. In 2009, the museum opened Moderna Museet Malmö in Malmö. History The museum opened in Stockh ...

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, and at Statens Museum for Kunst in

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 ...

. Sitter was awarded the

Prince Eugen Medal The Prince Eugen Medal () is a medal conferred by the King of Sweden for "outstanding artistic achievement". The medal was established in 1945 by the then King of Sweden, Gustaf V, in connection with the eightieth birthday of his brother Prince ...

for painting in 1983. She was decorated Knight, First Class of the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

in 1998, and Commander in 2010. She was awarded the

Arts Council Norway Honorary Award The Arts Council Norway Honorary Award () is awarded annually by the Arts Council Norway. The prize is awarded annually to a person who has made a significant contribution to Norwegian art and culture. The prize committee does not solicit nom ...

in 2011.

Personal life

She was married twice, first to visual artist

Carl Nesjar Carl Nesjar (né Carlsen; 6 July 1920 – 23 May 2015) was a Norwegian painter, sculptor and graphic artist. He is best known for his collaborations with Pablo Picasso; serving for nearly twenty years as Picasso's chosen fabricator — the art ...

(1920–2015) from 1955 to 1967, and second to gallery owner Rolf Dahlström (1927-1999). In 2015, Sitter died at the age of 85. She was buried at

Vestre gravlund Vestre Gravlund is a cemetery in the Frogner borough of Oslo, Norway. It is located next to the Borgen (station), Borgen metro station. At , it is the largest cemetery in Norway. It was inaugurated in September 1902 and also contains a cremator ...

in Oslo.Artists hail the late Inger Sitter
(News In English)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sitter, Inger 1929 births 2015 deaths Artists from Trondheim 20th-century Norwegian painters 21st-century Norwegian painters Academic staff of the Oslo National Academy of the Arts Recipients of the Prince Eugen Medal Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal Burials at Vestre gravlund 20th-century Norwegian women painters 21st-century Norwegian women painters