Lauritz Berg Hartz (27 December 1903 – 22 September 1987) was a Danish artist, considered to be one of the country's finest colourists.

Biography

Born in

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

, Hartz was first instructed in art at the age of 19 by the German

Expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

painter,

Fritz Urschbach Fritz originated as a German nickname for Friedrich, or Frederick (''Der Alte Fritz'', and ''Stary Fryc'' were common nicknames for King Frederick II of Prussia and Frederick III, German Emperor) as well as for similar names including Fridolin a ...

who aroused his interest in naturalism. He studied at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi - Billedkunst Skolerne) 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 Dan ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

under Sigurd Wandel and Aksel Jørgensen where he quickly gained a reputation as a talented artist. Suffering from

schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wi ...

, his health deteriorated from about 1935, requiring him to be hospitalised more and more frequently.Review of Kjeld Heltoft's book Maleren Lauritz Hartz (in Danish).
Retrieved 12 December 2008 Yet even after permanent hospitalisation in

Nykøbing Sjælland Nykøbing , often referred to as Nykøbing Sjælland or Nykøbing Sj to destinguish it from Nykøbing F and Nykøbing M, is a seaside town in Denmark, located in Odsherred on the northwestern part of Zealand. Located on the Isefjord, it ha ...

in 1942, he continued to paint, participating in the exhibitions of the Corner group of which he had been a founding member. Many of his works depict scenes from

Odsherred Odsherred is a peninsula in the north-western part of the island Zealand (Sjælland) in Denmark. Odsherred stretches from the Sjællands Odde in the north-west to the now drained Lammefjord in the south, covering an area with a wide range of the ...

in the northwest of

Zealand Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020. It is th ...

. He is considered to be a member of the group of artists known as the

Odsherred Painters Odsherred Painters ( da, Odsherredsmalerne) is a term applied to Danish artists from various periods with connections to Odsherred in the northwest of Zealand, Denmark. Some were born there while others settled in the area or painted there. While ...

, especially as he joined them in forming Corner. Hartz' earlier portraits, landscapes and still lifes were characterised by thick layers of paint. With time, the human form disappeared as his style became more sketchy. The once vivid colours were increasingly thinned down. Ultimately he reverted just to drawings and watercolours. Hertz died on 22 September 1987 in

. The

Holstebro Holstebro is the main town in Holstebro Municipality, Denmark. The town, bisected by ''Storåen'' ("The Large Creek") and has a population of 36,489 (1 January 2022).

Museum of Art in north-west

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

holds the largest collection of Lauritz Hartz’ works with over 3,000 of his drawings and paintings.

Awards

Hartz 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 Ec ...

in 1940 and the

Thorvaldsen Medal The Thorvaldsen Medal ( 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 the visual arts. I ...

in 1967.

References

Literature

External links

Examples of Lauritz Hartz work from Statens Museum for Kunst
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hartz, Lauritz 1903 births 1987 deaths 20th-century Danish painters Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal Recipients of the Thorvaldsen Medal People from Frederiksberg