Johannes Larsen

b. Kerteminde 1867, d. s.p. 1961

The Bird Painter at Møllebakken

The hunter, nature lover, scientist and artist Johannes Larsen is known and loved for his depictions of Denmark’s birds and nature. He is also known simply as “The Bird Painter”. He grew up in a family with an interest in art at his father’s merchant’s house in Kerteminde. In 1898, he married the painter Alhed Warberg. At the beginning of the 20th century, significant changes took place on the Danish art scene. Johannes Larsen did not succumb to the passing vogues of art. He remained true to his passion: nature and birds.

The Bird Painter, Kerteminde and Møllebakken
From 1901–02, the artists Johannes and Alhed Larsen built their marital home at Møllebakken in Kerteminde. The house and garden became an artistic haven. Johannes Larsen also liked to stay in Nymindegab and at Fiilsø in West Jutland, where he depicted the birds, the air thick with rain, the misty horizon and the cloudy light. For years, Johannes Larsen closely studied the Danish birds in their natural habitat, depicting the Danish natural resources for the generations to come. One of Larsen’s main works is “Brent geese over rainy waters”(1908), which has been called a milestone in Danish art.

The Fynbo painters Johannes Larsen, Peter Hansen and Fritz Syberg
Together with Peter Hansen and Fritz Syberg, Johannes Larsen formed the core of the group known as the Fynbo Painters (which also included Anna Syberg and Alhed Larsen). They met as students at Kristian Zahrtmann’s school in Copenhagen and made their début together at Den Frie Udstilling (the Free Exhibition) in 1894. Unlike the other artists of their day, the Fynbo Painters were deeply rooted in the Danish nature. The Danish landscape, everyday family life and the work of country folk were their motifs of choice. The idiom was predominantly naturalistic – contrary to the work of the symbolists of that day – and the group was derogatorily dubbed the “peasant painters”. Despite provoking outrage and debate in their day, the group came to play a central role in Danish art history.