Kirsten Kjær

After a rather confused early life, in 1925 she realized she wanted to paint and, inspired by Gauguin's works, made a trip to France.

On her return to Denmark, she visited Skagen where she met the Swedish writers Brita von Horn and Elsa Collin who introduced her to art circles in Stockholm.

After World War II, she traveled widely, painting both portraits and landscapes in Poland, Lapland, Iceland, Tunisia and Liberia.

Her colourful, expressive and increasingly decorative portraits depicted not only well-known figures of her times but also ordinary people she came across on her travels.

[3] Although she had no formal training in painting, she had become familiar with the artistic environment through her husband and his brother, the painter Jens Nielsen [de].

[3] After the end of World War II, Kjær visited Poland, painting the picture Polske Blomster (Polish Flowers, 1047) depicting two young girls.

Her friends and supporters created a foundation which in 1981 led to the establishment of the Kirsten Kjæers Museum in Frøstrup where many of her works can be seen.