The exhibition “In the light of Italy: a Danish Norwegian artistic community, 1879-1886” will open in the Art Museum of Lillehammer, in Norway, on 4 March.
The exhibition tells the story of a group of Danish and Norwegian artists who pursued their dream of Italy by retiring in the small towns of Sora (in lower Lazio) and Civita d’Antino (Abbruzzo). There painters Peder Severin Krøyer, Eilif Peterssen, Christian Meyer Ross, Joakim Skovgaard, Kristian Zahrtmann, Theodor Philipsen and Viggo Pedersen imbued their painting style with a higher degree of realism, drawing more inspiration from the “light of Italy”, the monumental landscapes and the appealing everyday life of the inhabitants.
The exhibition – organised by the Den Hirschsprungske Samling Museum of Copenhagen, the Skovgaard Museet of Viborg and the Lillehammer Kunstmuseum, in partnership with the Italian Cultural Institute in Oslo – will be inaugurated by the President of the Norwegian Parliament, Olemic Thommessen. The ribbon-cutting ceremony will also feature a concert by Italian cellist Emery Cardas and violinist Berit Cardas.
