Vilhelm Hammershøi

Biography

Vilhelm Hammershøi entered the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen at the age of 15, when his hearing loss in one ear was discovered. At 20, he began studying at the painting school of Skagen artist P. S. Krøyer. "I think I will learn more from the old art than the new," wrote Hammershøi during his first and only trip to Paris in 1891. The majority of his life was spent in Copenhagen. In 1898, Hammershøi relocated to a 17th-century residence, notable for its elegant mirrored doors and expansive windows. This apartment at Strandgaden 30 is the setting for his legendary painting, Five Portraits, which is part of the Thiel Collection. Hammershøi's early works, which features interior scenes painted in muted tones with minimal detail, often depicts humans enveloped in a meditative atmosphere. His wife Ida frequently served as his model. Hammershøi was reserved, self-critical, hypersensitive, and the art world did not always understand his use of black, gray, and white. Despite this, many of the great artists of the 20th century were inspired by Hammershøi. The Thiel Gallery includes two works by the artist.