Michael Ancher’s paintings depict the story of everyday life with a realistic brush that does not filter out the harsh truth: from depictions of the fishermen’s days on the beach, mending fishing nets, to their often-treacherous trips out at sea, where the struggle to earn a living could result in a violent death. He also painted self-portraits. Michael Ancher was a high-profile artist who in Danish art history is seen as a bridge builder between the traditions of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and the realism of the Skagen painters. He began his artistic career at C.V. Nielsen’s Drawing School, and in 1871, he was admitted to the Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.
Michael Ancher, Anna Ancher and the Major Works
In 1874, when he was 25, Ancher travelled to Skagen for the first time, together with artist and art critic Karl Madsen, where, like other well-known Skagen painters, he was captivated by the light, nature and the local people. It was here that he met his future wife and fellow artist, Anna Ancher (née Brøndum). He was later inspired by Anna Ancher’s fine light and colour depictions. In the main work “Will He Round the Point” from 1880 and in “A Stroll on the Beach” from 1896 (both at the Art Museums of Skagen), the inspiration from P.S. Krøyer is clear. However, Michael Ancher’s vivid depictions show not only how he used the local people as motifs, but how deeply invested he was in the people behind them. Anna and Michael Ancher had a daughter, Helga Ancher, who also became a talented artist.
Michael Ancher and the Skagen Painters
During the 1870s, a number of Scandinavian artists and writers gathered in Skagen to depict nature, the light and the locals in the fishing town. The artists’ colony consisted of Danish painters such as Anna and Michael Ancher, P.S. Krøyer, Viggo Johansen, Carl Locher, Lauritz Tuxen, the Norwegian Christian Krogh, the Swede Oscar Björck and the poet and painter Holger Drachmann. At that time, the visiting artists gathered at the childhood home of the artist Anna Ancher (née Brøndum), the town’s only guesthouse. Brøndum’s Hotel was where the artists and writers of the time met up, first at Brøndum’s garden house and then at Anna and Michael Ancher’s house on Markvej, which became one of the most central gathering places for the artists’ association. The artists in the town practised plein-air painting and liked to sit in the dunes by the sea, where they painted and made sketches for larger paintings, which they either completed in their studio or out in the open air.
Michael Ancher at Exhibition
In Denmark: Charlottenborg, Spring Exhibition 1874–1925, 1927; Kunstforeningen (The Art Society) 1890, 1892 and 1904. Raadhusudstilling (City Hall Exhibition), Copenhagen. 1901; Forum 1929; the Art Museums of Skagen and Charlottenborg 1949 (retrosp.); Skagens Rådhus (Skagen Town Hall) 1983, Kunstforeningen (The Art Society), Copenhagen. 1983; National Gallery of Denmark, et al. 1985-86; Sophienholm 1992; Ordrupgaard 2023/24 (Anna og Michael Ancher – sammen og hver for sig/Anna and Michael Ancher – Together and Separately); the Art Museums of Skagen, the Hirschsprung Collection and Ribe Kunstmuseum 2018/19 (Michael Ancher and the Women of Skagen).
Abroad: Erste internat. Kunst-Ausst., Vienna 1882; Internat. Kunstausst., Berlin 1891; Expo. Universelle, Antwerp 1894; Paris Exposition 1889, Chicago 1893; Paris Exposition 1900; Mus. of Fine Arts, Budapest 1906-07; Guildhall, London 1907; Brighton 1912; Brooklyn Mus. 1927; L’art danois, Jeu de Paume, Paris 1928; The Danish Art Exhibition, Kunstnernes Hus, Oslo 1931; The Danish Art Exhibition in Riga 1936; in Budapest 1936; in Bucharest 1936–37; in Beograd 1937.
Some of Michael Ancher’s Nominations and Awards
1887 – The Eckersberg Medal
1889 – The Thorvaldsen Medal
1889 – Gold Medal, Paris Exposition
1894 – World Exhibition, Berlin
1894 – World Exhibition, Antwerp
Works by Michael Ancher for Sale at Bruun Rasmussen
More and more collectors are buying Michael Ancher’s paintings at auction. At Bruun Rasmussen, we have works for sale that arouse interest and are relevant to buyers and collectors. Here, you can keep an eye on the works by Michael Ancher that you can bid on right now.
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