Þórarinn B. Þorláksson

Originally trained and working as a bookbinder, Þórarinn studied painting under a Copenhagen-trained Icelandic woman, Thóra Thoroddsen.

In 1900 he was awarded a grant by the Icelandic Parliament to study art in Denmark, and he trained there from 1895 to 1899.

On December 30, 1913, he was appointed by Prime Minister Hannes Hafstein as one of the five people on the committee that designed the Flag of Iceland.

Throughout his life he continued to paint, particularly in the countryside during the summers, and it was at his own summerhouse, Birkihlíð, that he died on July 10, 1924.

This biography is based on Júliana Gottskálksdóttir's essay in Þórarinn B. Þorláksson: Pioneer at the Dawn of a Century (see below)