Hans Christian Viggo-Hansen (31 March 1859 – 6 October 1930) was a Danish painter, sculptor and artisan metalsmith.

Biography

Early life and education

He was born Hans Christian Viggo Hansen 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 ...

, the son of master brazier Peter Christian Hansen (1824–97) and Sara Marie Henriette Andersen (1824–84). He completed a brazier's apprenticeship in 1879 but had aspirations to become a painter. He received preparatory training in painting under painter and conservator Carl Christian Andersen (1849-1906) before attending 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 ...

for three quarters of a year in 1882-83.

Career

He had his debut at the Charlottenborg Exhibition in 1885–86 with two paintings, ''A View of

Christianshavns Kanal Christianshavns Kanal ( English: Christianshavn Canal) is a canal in the Christianshavn neighbourhood of Copenhagen, Denmark. Running northeast–southwest, it bisects the neighbourhood along its length. To the north it connects to Trangraven, th ...

and A View of Copenhagen Harbour from Nybørs'', but a

visual impairment Visual or vision impairment (VI or VIP) is the partial or total inability of visual perception. In the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment, visual impairment may cause the individual difficul ...

then forced him to give up painting. He then returned to his old trade, concentrating on executing sculptural works in hammered metals, both from his own designs and those of other artists. Viggo-Hansen also created baptismal dishes in silver, tin and iron for a number of churches. A selection of these were featured on the Society of Decorative Art's exhibition in February–March 1903. This brought him in contact with H. A. Gruberts Sønners Metalvarefabrik where he served as artistic director for many years. He went on study trips to Germany, Austria and Italy on grants from the Larssenske Legat and the Reiersen Foundation. Late in his life, he returned to painting, spending several summers on

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

painting seascapes. He died on 6 October 1930 and is buried in

Bispebjerg Cemetery Bispebjerg Cemetery ( Danish: Bispebjerg Kirkegård), established in 1903 on the moderately graded north slope of Bispebjerg Hill, is the newest of five municipal cemeteries in Copenhagen, Denmark. The main entrance to the cemetery is located ne ...

Selected works

He was charged with executing

Vilhelm Bissen Christian Gottlieb Vilhelm Bissen (5 August 1836 – 20 April 1913) was a Danish sculptor. He was also a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts with great influence on the next generation of Danish sculptors and for a while ser ...

's statue of

Absalon Absalon (21 March 1201) was a Danish statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Roskilde from 1158 to 1192 and archbishop of Lund from 1178 until his death. He was the foremost politician and church father of De ...

for the new

Copenhagen City Hall Copenhagen City Hall () is the headquarters of the Copenhagen City Council as well as the Lord mayor of the Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. The building is situated on City Hall Square in central Copenhagen. Architecture The current building ...

. It was awarded a gold medal on the Exposition Universelle 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 ...

in 1900. Vigo-Gansen was also responsible for creating other metalwork for the new city hall, including the coat of arms on the facade. Danish brewer, art collector and philanthropist

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 ...

(1842–1914) charged him with a number of prominent commissions for his many building projects, including ''Thor med sine bukke'' (by

Carl Johan Bonnesen Carl Johan Bonnesen (26 May 1868 – 13 December 1933) was a Danish sculptor. He specialised in depictions of animals and exotic, "primitive" subjects as seen in the first sculpture he ever exhibited, ''A Victorious Group of Huns'' from 1889. It ...

) for the Ny Carlsberg Brewhouse, the ''Bell-Strikers'' (based on a small sketch by

Stephan Sinding Stephan Abel Sinding (4 August 1846 – 23 January 1922) was a Norwegian- Danish sculptor. He moved to Copenhagen in 1883 and had his breakthrough the same year. In 1890 he obtained Danish citizenship. In 1910 he settled in Paris where he liv ...

) on the Dipylon Building and the angel for the spire of the Jesus Church and dragon ornaments for his own house (Viggo-Hansen's design). Other works by Viggo-Hansen include the roof-top figure on

Det Ny Teater Det Ny Teater (English: The New Theatre) is an established theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, first opened in 1908. It is based in a building which spans a passage between Vesterbrogade and Gammel Kongevej in Copenhagen's theatre district on the borde ...

(designed in collaboration with

Jens Jacob Bregnø Jens Jacob Nielsen Bregnø (9 February 1877 – 26 March 1946), often referred to as J. J. Bregnø, was a Danish sculptor and ceramics designer. He collaborated with Bing & Grøndahl, Saxbo and Dahl Jensen Porcelain and also designed silver for ...

) and the fish on the Caritas Gountain in

Gammeltorv Gammeltorv (Old Market) is the oldest square in Copenhagen, Denmark. With adjoining Nytorv it forms a common space along the Strøget pedestrian zone. While the square dates back to the foundation of the city in the 12th century, most of its buil ...

were also created by Viggo-Hansen.

References

External links

Hans Christian Viggo-Hansen
at

Kunstindeks Danmark ''Weilbachs Kunstnerleksikon'' (English: ''Weilbach's Biographical Dictionary of Artists'') is a Danish biographical dictionary of artists and architects. The current edition, which is also freely accessible online, contains the biographies of some ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Viggo-Hansen, Hans Christian 20th-century Danish painters 20th-century Danish sculptors Danish male sculptors 19th-century Danish metalsmiths Artisans from Copenhagen 1859 births 1930 deaths 20th-century Danish male artists Danish male painters