Ásgrímur Jónsson / Home of an artist
05, May 2021 - 30, January 2022
(see calendar for other dates)
Open from 10.00am - 5.00pm
Website
//www.listasafn.is
General Admission See on official website
Step into magic! The visual world of Icelandic folklore and fairy tales created by Ásgrímur Jónsson in his art is a truly enchanted realm. Elves, trolls and ghosts, which had lived in the Icelandic mind in the semi-darkness of the old turf farmhouse, were given a clear form in Ásgrímur’s art. He first exhibited such pieces in Iceland in 1905. Ásgrímur’s works on folklore themes were well received; in the press, reviewers expressed delight that for the first time the folktale heritage was being addressed by an Icelandic artist. Ásgrímur’s depictions of the appearance of elves and trolls met with widespread approval; hence the artist appears to have succeeded in capturing the way that Icelanders in general imagined such beings. Today the folklore paintings form part of the unique cultural heritage conserved in the collections of the National Gallery of Iceland.