Ulrikke Eleonore Sigwardt Greve (1868–1951) was a leading Norwegian

textile artist Textile arts are arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects. Textiles have been a fundamental part of human life since the beginning of civilization. The methods and materials use ...

in the early 20th-century, excelling in

tapestry Tapestry is a form of Textile arts, textile art which was traditionally Weaving, woven by hand on a loom. Normally it is used to create images rather than patterns. Tapestry is relatively fragile, and difficult to make, so most historical piece ...

work. In 1900, she was appointed director of the weaving school at the National Museum of Decorative Arts (Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum) 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 ...

. From 1905, she taught and produced rugs in the establishment she opened in

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 ...

. Some were her own creations, others were from designs by artists including

Gerhard Munthe Gerhard Peter Frantz Munthe (19 July 1849 in Elverum (town), Elverum, Hedmark – 15 January 1929 in Lysaker, Bærum Municipality, Bærum) was a Norwegian painter and illustrator. Background Munthe was born in Elverum (town), Elverum to physicia ...

and

Arne Kavli Arne Kavli (27 May 1878 – 23 September 1970) was a Norwegian painter. Biography Kavli was born in Bergen, Norway. He was the son of actor Kristoffer Kavli (1845–1888) and Agnes Texnes (1851–1937). He was the brother of actress Aagot ...

. Her works can be seen in

Oslo City Hall Oslo City Hall () is a municipal building in Oslo, the capital of Norway. It houses the city council, the city's administration and various other municipal organisations. The building as it stands today was constructed between 1931 and 1950, wi ...

(the ''Harald Hardråde'' tapestry) and in museums including the

National Museum of Norway The National Museum (, officially the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design) is a museum in Oslo, Norway which holds the Norwegian state's public collection of art, architecture, and design objects. The collection totals over 400,000 w ...

Biography

Born on 26 May 1868 in

Vang, Hedmark Vang is a former municipality in the old Hedmark county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1992 when it became part of Hamar Municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was at Fredvang. This si ...

, Ulrikke Eleonore Sigwardt Greve was the daughter of the hospital director

Mathias Sigwardt Greve Mathias Sigwardt Greve (17 September 1832 – 27 December 1912) was a Norwegian physician, best known as the director of Rikshospitalet from 1883 to 1911. Personal life He was born in Bergen as a son of curate Arent Wittendorph Greve and Ulrike El ...

(1832–1912) and Blanca Olivia Juell (1836–1918). She was the sister of the architect

Bredo Greve Adolf Bredo Stabell Greve (28 June 1871 – 30 March 1931) was a Norwegian architect. Biography Greve was born at Hamar in Hedmark, Norway. He was a son of Mathias Sigwardt Greve (1832–1912) and Blanca Olivia Juell (1836–1918). He was a bro ...

and the writer . In 1895, she married the pharmacist Carl Mathias Ulstrup Dahle but the marriage was dissolved in 1902. Ulrikke Greve was raised in a well-to-do culturally-oriented home. Her father, a medical doctor who later headed the National Hospital, had founded Norway's first handicraft school in

Hamar Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...

in 1875. She graduated as a pharmacist in 1892 but turned to decorative weaving, receiving instruction from Augusta Christensen. Soon one of the country's best weavers, she taught in rural

Nordfjord Nordfjord (—in contrast to Sunnfjord) is a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. Geography The region is located in the northern part of Vestland county in Western Norway. It centers on the Nordfjorden and it comprises Stad Muni ...

until she was invited in 1900 to head the weaving school at the Arts and Crafts Museum in Trondheim. After undergoing further training 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 ...

, she led the school to prominence in 1904 when 17 tapestries were produced. They won gold medals at the world's fairs in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

(1904) and

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

(1905). In 1905, she moved to Christiania where she founded her own school, Norsk Kunstvæv, which proved very popular. She developed her own manufacturing facilities, producing rugs designed by famous artists in addition to those she designed herself. She gained a reputation as an outstanding proponent of weaver-artist collaboration, thanks to her expertise in regard to yarn, colours and technique. Her most important work ''Blaa skog'' was the result of her collaboration with Arne Kavli which bordered on

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

, transforming Norway's traditional weaving designs into the world of contemporary art. Her last major work was the creation of tapestries for the

, in particular her ''Harald Hardråde'' tapestry (1937) based on a small drawing she had discovered. Further work in collaboration with

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 ...

proved increasingly unnerving as she found it difficult to comply with his wishes. On completion of this assignment, she withdrew from weaving. Ulrikke Greve died in Oslo on 2 April 1951.

References

External links

Examples of Ulrikka Greve's work from the National Museum of Norway
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greve, Ulrikke 1868 births 1951 deaths People from Hamar Norwegian tapestry artists Norwegian textile designers 19th-century Norwegian women artists 20th-century Norwegian women artists Norwegian writers Norwegian women writers