Asta Norregaard, Norway's 'Sargent,' Gets First Major Retrospective

The National Museum in Oslo has mounted 'Asta Norregaard: Truth and Beauty,' the first major exhibition dedicated to the Norwegian portrait painter, running through October 18. The show brings together 48 key works, mostly from private collections. Norregaard was a sought-after portraitist among Norway's elite at the turn of the 20th century, but was dismissed by critics and former National Gallery director Jens Thiis as a mere 'fashion portraitist' of 'high-society ladies.' Thiis, who led the museum from 1908 to 1941, never acquired a single Norregaard work. Curator Wenche Volle has dubbed Norregaard the 'Sargent of Norway,' drawing parallels to John Singer Sargent. Both artists created high-society portraits emphasizing elegant settings and fine fabrics, and both faced criticism for focusing on fashion and commercial portraiture. Norregaard's 'Portrait of Marthine Cappelen Hjort (née Kiaer)' (1897) is among the works on view. The exhibition marks a revision of the museum's historical stance and introduces an artist nearly unknown outside Scandinavia.