Norwegian folk art

Magazine Antiques, Sept, 1995 by Allison Eckardt Ledes

One thing the Norwegians brought with them to America was a long tradition of folk art, which is examined in a traveling exhibition on view at the Museum of American Folk Art in New York City from September 16 to January 7, 1996. Future listings will appear in Calendar. Entitled Norwegian Folk Art: The Migration of a Tradition, the exhibition embraces the development of folk art in Norway and provides examples of folk art made here by the first settlers and their descendants.

The first Norwegian immigrants came from the central highlands: Telemark, Numedal, Hallingdal, Setesdal, Valdres, and Gudbrandsdalen, all regions rich in folk art traditions. They originally settled in the Fox River valley in La Salle County, Illinois, and later in Wisconsin, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Iowa. Eventually Wisconsin, particularly the Trempealeau valley in the western part of the state, had the greatest concentration of Norwegians.

Many Norwegians brought their household goods to America in the wonderfully painted chests that are so familiar to us today. They are largely decorated in the style of painting known as rosemaling, or floral painting, an art form practiced in many parts of Norway but most expertly in Telemark and Hallingdal. The chests served as furniture until the house was furnished, at which point they were more often than not relegated to an outbuilding where they were used to store everything from tools to grain. Almost all the regional variations of rosemaling made their way to America, and many were revived later in the nineteenth century.

Among the items settlers suggested that their families and friends bring from Norway were tools, looms, bedding, rifles, and silver (which could be sold at a tidy profit upon arrival). The settlers produced very little in the way of folk art once they were here, largely because an industrialized America produced goods so cheaply that labor-intensive hand-craftsmanship became obsolete. What folk art was made here generally came from southwestern Wisconsin, northeastern Iowa, and southeastern Minnesota - all regions that were relatively far from manufacturing centers.

Wood carving was one of the last skills to die out. Acanthus carving survived from the baroque era in Norway, and stylized animals and birds were also popular. In the later nineteenth century interest in carving revived, with dragons and other Viking motifs being particularly popular.

Norwegians in America produced textiles chiefly on looms they brought with them or that were made locally shortly after they settled. Since ready-made textiles were widely available and inexpensive, weaving did not become popular until its revival as a craft late in the nineteenth century. Also at that time women began to decorate and household linens with embroidery. When Norway became independent of Sweden in 1905 there was a resurgence of nationalism and a consequent interest in native costumes in which both the embroidery and the fabrics identify the town of origin - distinctive variations that have persisted to the present in costumes created both in Norway and among Americans of Norwegian descent.

The catalogue of the exhibition contains essays by Marion Nelson, the guest curator, and eight other scholars. It has 364 pages, 150 color plates, and 100 black-and-white illustrations. The price of the catalogue had not been determined at the time we went to press; contact the Museum of American Folk Art Bookshop, Two Lincoln Square, New York, New York 10023-6214.

A symposium entitled Norwegian Folk Art: The Migration of a Tradition will be held at the museum on September 23. The speakers are Marion Nelson, Gerard C. Wertkin, John Gjerdi, Kristin Anderson, Carol Colburn, and Tonte Hegard. For further information telephone 212-977-7170 or fax 212-977-8134. The exhibition and symposium are part of a national cultural program initiated by the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs entitled Norwegian Visions, which includes programs in the visual and performing arts held around the country through the spring of 1996.

The history of hot beverages in England

Upon Her Arrival on British soil in 1662, the Portuguese princess Catherine of Braganza reportedly requested a cup of tea. However, the best the attendants could offer at the time was a glass of ale! Considering our dependence on tea, coffee, and hot chocolate, it is difficult to imagine that their widespread popularity took centuries to develop. An exhibition that investigates that social history of drinking these hot beverages, as well as the various accouterments that accompanied them in the form of ceramics, silver, and furniture, is on view at Fairfax House in York, England, from September 1 to November 20. Entitled In Praise of Hot Liquors: The Study of Chocolate, Coffee and Tea-drinking 1600-1850, the exhibition was organized by Peter B. Brown, the director of Fairfax House.

All three of these drinks had ancient beginnings in the countries that grew the respective beans and leaves, and all had been tasted by Europeans as early as the sixteenth century. However, it was not until about 1650 that they could be bought in England, imported in the vessels of the English East India Company and the Dutch East India Company. The popularity of these drinks was ensured when someone thought to add cane sugar to them to decrease their bitter taste.