Kitsch is a term applied to art and design that is perceived as naïve imitation, overly eccentric, gratuitous or of banal taste.
Larvik is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 48,246 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110km coastline, only shorter than that of neighbouring Sandefjord.
Odd Nerdrum is a Norwegian figurative painter, born in Sweden. His work is held by museums worldwide. Themes and style in Nerdrum's work reference anecdote and narrative. Primary influences by the painters Rembrandt and Caravaggio help place his work in direct conflict with the abstraction and conceptual art considered acceptable in much of Norway. Nerdrum creates six to eight paintings a year. They include still life paintings of small, everyday objects, portraits and self-portraits, and large paintings allegorical and apocalyptic in nature. The figures in Nerdrum's paintings are often dressed as if from another time and place.
The culture of Norway is closely linked to the country's history and geography. The unique Norwegian farm culture, sustained to this day, has resulted not only from scarce resources and a harsh climate but also from ancient property laws. In the 19th century, it brought about a strong romantic nationalistic movement, which is still visible in the Norwegian language and media. In the 19th century, Norwegian culture blossomed as efforts continued to achieve an independent identity in the areas of literature, art and music. This continues today in the performing arts and as a result of government support for exhibitions, cultural projects and artwork.
Roar Kjernstad is a painter who specialises in traditional figurative work. He trained at the Nansen Academy in Lillehammer and at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Antwerp, focusing at the latter on study of the Old Masters.
Stefano Cagol is an Italian contemporary artist living in Italy, Germany and Norway. He works with video, photography and installation and performance art in the fields of conceptual art, environmental art / eco art and land art, and has reflected for years on borders, viruses, flags and climate issues.
Cecilie Broch Knudsen is a Norwegian artist who was rector of the Oslo National Academy of the Arts from August 2007 to August 2015.
Natalie Radina Holland is a Russian-born contemporary artist, formerly based in Norway and now working in England.
Daniel Birnbaum is a Swedish art curator and an art critic. Since 2019, he has been director and curator of Acute Art in London, UK.
Arrigo Renato Marzola (1889–1965) was an Italian painter.
Richard T. Scott is an American history painter and writer living and working in the Hudson Valley, New York. His paintings are in the permanent collections of museums in North America and Europe. He was formerly a member of the Artistic Infusion Program, a group of artists and illustrators contracted to design coins and Congressional Medals for the United States Mint.
Arild Peter Haaland was a Norwegian philosopher, literary historian, translator and non-fiction writer. He was born in Bergen. His thesis from 1956 was an analysis of the Nazism in Germany. He was decorated Knight, First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 1979. He received the Fritt Ord Award in 1992. Haaland was portrayed by sculptor Arnold Haukeland, and by the painters Odd Nerdrum and Karl Erik Harr.
Kaja Norum is a Norwegian model and figurativist painter. A former student and protégé of painter Odd Nerdrum, Norum is devoted to Nerdrum's philosophy of Kitsch painting, and is a part of The Kitsch Movement spawned by Nerdrum. After the latter relocated to France in 2011, Norum is the primary caretaker of his gallery and his estate.
Dag Hol is a Norwegian figurative painter and graphic artist. He is educated at the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts (1980-1984) and has been a student of Gunnar Dietrichson and Odd Nerdrum. Earlier he studied Nordic, French, German and Sanskrit language and literature at the University of Oslo. He has since he was 18–19 years old practised yoga and Acem-meditation regularly and this has influenced his artistic and philosophical point of view. He made his debut as an artist with his solo exhibition in 1983 in Oslo.
Markus Andersson is a Swedish artist and teacher of art at Medborgarskolan and Folkuniversitetet in Uppsala.
The Savior of Painting is a 1997 painting by the Norwegian artist Odd Nerdrum. It is also known as Self-Portrait as the Prophet of Painting. It depicts Nerdrum in a golden robe, standing barefoot under the evening sky, with a paintbrush in his right hand and a palette in his left.
The Murder of Andreas Baader is a 1978 painting by the Norwegian artist Odd Nerdrum. It depicts the speculative murder of Andreas Baader, one of the leaders of the far-left organisation Red Army Faction, in the Stammheim Prison in 1977.
Martin Romberg is a Norwegian classical composer. He is one of the most active orchestral composers of his generation in Scandinavia. He is mostly known for his J.R.R Tolkien and fantasy literature inspired orchestral and choral works.
The 18th Venice Biennale, held in 1932, was an exhibition of international contemporary art, with 13 participating nations. The Venice Biennale takes place biennially in Venice, Italy.
Aase Gulbrandsen was a Norwegian painter and graphic artist.
