”OPUS I”, 1979

Richard Mortensen 1910-1993

”OPUS I”, 1979

Signed and dated on the reverse
Oil on canvas, 130 x 97 cm

Literature:
Jan Würtz Frandsen, “Richard Mortensen, Ting og tegn”
Illustrated in Colour, Page 348

Exhibited:
Den Frie udstilling, Copenhagen, 1982 No. 103

 

In 1932, Richard Mortensen left the Royal Academy of Fine Art in Copenhagen, for Berlin. Here he met members of the Bauhaus, Kandinsky and Klee and he began working on his first abstract works. Mortensen was later one of the joint founders of the Danish art group “Linien”.

He moved to Paris in 1947, remaining there until 1964. Mortensen became connected to Galerie Denise René in Paris, which became famous for concrete art. His international breakthrough took place in the early 1950’s, after which Mortensen exhibited throughout most of the world and his later works from this period are concrete works of art characterized by large, clear, bright color surfaces.

Mortensen was awarded the Edvard Munch Prize in 1946, and the Kandinsky prize in 1950, and the Thorvaldsen Medal, 1968. After his return to Denmark in 1964, he received a professorship at the Royal Danish Academy of Art in Copenhagen, which he held until 1980.

Year 1979
Artist Richard Mortensen 1910-1993
Price Price on request
Materials Oil on canvas
Height 130 cm
Width 97 cm

The story behind

 

The artist Richard Mortensen (1910-1993) expressed himself in painting and graphics. In 1933-34, he formed Linien together with Ejler Bille and Vilhelm Bjerke Petersen, who were instrumental in introducing surrealism in Denmark. In 1947 he traveled with the sculptor Robert Jacobsen to Paris, where they, at the Parisian Gallery Denise René, together with a number of other artists, revolved around a constructivist, abstract expression. The later works are i.a. inspired by Zen Buddhism. Mortensen is one of the most important Danish artists of the 20th century and has received several honors.

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