Stephan Abel Sinding (4 August 1846 – 23 January 1922) was a Norwegian- Danish

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

. He moved to

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 ...

in 1883 and had his breakthrough the same year. In 1890 he obtained Danish citizenship. In 1910 he settled in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where he lived and worked until his death in 1922.

Early life and education

Stephan Abel Sinding was born in

Trondhjem 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 t ...

as a son of mining engineer Matthias Wilhelm Sinding (1811–1860) and Cecilie Marie Mejdell (1817–1886). Sinding was the brother of the composer

Christian Sinding Christian August Sinding (11 January 18563 December 1941) was a Norwegian composer. He is best known for his lyrical work for piano '' Frühlingsrauschen'' (Rustle of Spring, 1896). He was often compared to Edvard Grieg and regarded as his succ ...

and painter Otto Ludvig Sinding and the nephew of Nicolai Mejdell (1822–1899) and Thorvald Mejdell (1824–1908), and through the former a first cousin of

Glør Thorvald Mejdell Glør Thorvald Mejdell (29 May 1851 – 24 November 1937) was a Norwegian barrister, judge and political writer. He was born in Kongsberg as a son of mining engineer Nicolai Mejdell (1822–1899), nephew of forester Thorvald Mejdell and grandneph ...

, who married Stephan's sister Thora Cathrine Sinding. Stephan Sinding was also a first cousin of Alfred Sinding-Larsen and the three siblings Ernst Anton Henrik Sinding, Elisabeth Sinding (1846–1930) and

Gustav Adolf Sinding Gustav, Gustaf or Gustave may refer to: *Gustav (name), a male given name of Old Swedish origin Art, entertainment, and media * ''Primeval'' (film), a 2007 American horror film * ''Gustav'' (film series), a Hungarian series of animated short cart ...

(1849–1925). Sinding first embarked on law studies in Christiania but broke off to instead pursue a career in the arts. He took drawing and modeling classes first at the Royal School of Drawing in Christiania and then studied privately with sculptor Albert Wolff in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Sinding spent his adult life working in different places mostly

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, and finally

. From 1874 to 1875 he studied in

and picked up influences from the latest Realist tendencies in French sculptures, especially from

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (; ; 12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a u ...

and Paul Dubois. Sinding was met with poor recognition from the Norwegian public since his style was considered too modern.

Career in Denmark

In 1883 he moved to

, which he found a better working place, and had his breakthrough with the sculpture ''A barbarian woman carries her dead son home from the battle'', created during a stay in

that same year. It was acquired by the brewer

Carl Jacobsen Carl Christian Hillman Jacobsen (2 March 1842 – 11 January 1914) was a Danish brewer, art collector and philanthropist. Though often preoccupied with his cultural interests, Jacobsen was a shrewd and visionary businessman and initiated the tra ...

, the son and heir of

Carlsberg Carlsberg may refer to: Places * Carlsberg (district), a district in Copenhagen, Denmark ** Carlsberg station, its train station * Carlsberg, Germany, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany * Carlsberg Fjord, Greenland Other uses * Carlsbe ...

-founder Jacob Christian Jacobsen, who was a great admirer of both classical and modern sculpture and was building an ever-growing private collection which in the end turned into the

Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek The Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek ("ny" means "new" in Danish; "Glyptotek" comes from the Greek root ''glyphein'', to carve, and ''theke'', storing place), commonly known simply as Glyptoteket, is an art museum in Copenhagen, Denmark. The collection ...

Sinding created a number of sculptures, among others ''Mother in Captivity'', which won him the Grand Prix at the

Exposition Universelle (1889) The of 1889 (), better known in English as the 1889 Paris Exposition, was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from 6 May to 31 October 1889. It was the fifth of ten major expositions held in the city between 1855 and 1937. It attracted more t ...

, ''Two figures'' (1889), and ''Young woman at her husband's body'' / ''The Widow'' (1892). Many of Sinding's sculptures are credited to realism, but together with Danish sculptor

Niels Hansen Jacobsen Niels Hansen Jacobsen (September 10, 1861 – November 26, 1941) was a Denmark, Danish Sculpture, sculptor and ceramist. He is most famous for creating the once controversial sculpture, ''Trold, der vejrer kristenblod''. The name of the statu ...

, among others, are by many considered much more in the style of

Symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: *Symbol, any object or sign that represents an idea Arts *Artistic symbol, an element of a literary, visual, or other work of art that represents an idea ** Color symbolism, the use of colors within various c ...

. An example of his symbolic work is his sculpture ''Valkyrjen'' (the valkyrie), a bronze cast of which stands in Churchill Park in Copenhagen. Sinding became a titular professor and taught private students in Copenhagen.

Late years in Paris

In 1910 Sinding moved to Paris, where he worked until his death. Assisted by Franz von Jessen, Sinding wrote an autobiography entitled ''En Billedhuggers Liv'' (1921). He died in January 1922 in Paris, and was buried at the

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (, , formerly , ) is the largest cemetery in Paris, France, at . With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Buried at Père Lachaise are many famous figures in the ...

Private life

In May 1885 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 ...

he married actress Anna Elga Augusta Betzonich (1859–1936).

Selected works

*''Vølund smed'', 1873 *''Hylas'', ca. 1880 *''Slaven'', 1878, *''Frise'', 1891 *''Enken'', 1892 *''Henrik Ibsen'', 1899 *''Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson'', 1899 *''Moder Jord'', 1900 *''Ole Bull'', 1901 *''Valkyrjen'', 1908 *''Angelus'', 1913 *''L'Offrande'', 1918 Image:Stephan Sinding - Electra.jpg, Stephan Sinding's ''Electra'' statue at Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen Image:Valkyrie, Copenhagen.jpg, ''Valkyrjen'' (1908), Churchill Park,

Image:Stephan Sinding-Verwitwet.jpg, ''Suddenly a Widow'' (ca. 1910)

Image:Stephan Sinding- Adoration I.jpg, ''Adoration I'' (ca. 1910)

Image:Stephan Sinding-Barbarenmutter.jpg, ''Barbarenmutter'' (ca. 1910) Image:Ole Bull (statue).jpg, ''Statue of Ole Bull'' (1901)
Bergen, Norway Image:Statue Bjørnson Nationaltheatret.jpg, ''Statue of Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson'' (1899)

National Theatre, Oslo The National Theatre in Oslo () is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts. History The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christiania Theatre, which was ...

Image:Ibsen sculpture Nationaltheatret.jpg, ''Statue of Henrik Ibsen'' (1899)

Image:Stephan Sinding - Un homme et une femme.jpg, Un homme et une femme Image:Stephan Sinding-Captive mother-Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek.jpg, Captive mother

References

Other sources

* Grappe, Georges ''Stephan Sinding'' (Paris: Librairie Artistique Internationale. 1920) *Rapsilber, M. ''Stephen Sinding'' (Marquardt & Co. 1910)

External links

PortraitKatalog
(In German) {{DEFAULTSORT:Sinding, Stephan Danish sculptors 19th-century Danish male artists Norwegian sculptors Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery Sculptors from Copenhagen 19th-century sculptors 20th-century sculptors 19th-century Danish sculptors 20th-century Danish people Norwegian emigrants to Denmark Naturalised citizens of Denmark Danish expatriates in France 1846 births 1922 deaths Male sculptors