Frits Thaulow

Haugar Art Museum Presents the Exhibition Frits Thaulow in Collaboration with KODE

Frits Thaulow is one of Norway's internationally most recognized artists of the late 19^th century. However, in recent decades, the artist has rarely been featured in major exhibition projects in Norway.

This is particularly true of Thaulow’s Norwegian motifs. Several regional depictions remain quite unknown to the broader audience, like a series of paintings from the isle of Stord which has rarely been exhibited and which will be highlighted in the exhibition. Thaulow’s  extensive travels internationally are well known, and the exhibition will showcase how Thaulow continued to paint Norwegian motifs from various regions throughout his career, thereby expanding the understanding of Thaulow’s work. The last exhibition emphasizing such motifs was presented at Blaafarveværket in 1979. The 2025 exhibition will delve deeper and more systematically into this part of Thaulow’s artistic output.

In connection with the exhibition, a catalog will be published, featuring contributions from Norwegian and international writers who will provide new perspectives on both Thaulow's art and his participation in the Norwegian art scene of his time. Thaulow was a contemporary of Christian Krohg and an early supporter of Edvard Munch. The fact that Thaulow is particularly known for his international motifs has also influenced the understanding of his significance for the social aspects of art life in the 1880s and 1890s.

At the same time, it must be acknowledged that Norwegian art history research has generally paid Thaulow surprisingly little attention. This publication thus holds great potential to provide the most comprehensive and detailed introduction to Thaulow's work as a painter to date. The book will be richly illustrated, featuring both exhibited works and additional examples of key paintings, including works held in international collections.

The exhibition is supported by Sparebankstiftelsen DNB.