Nína Tryggvadóttir
Encyclopedia
Nína Tryggvadóttir was born Jónína Tryggvadóttir in Seyðisfjörður
, Iceland
.
Nína Tryggvadóttir is one of Iceland's most important abstract expressionist artists and one of very few Icelandic female artists of her generation. Mainly working in painting
she also did paper collage
, stained glass
work, mosaic
and more. She frequently based her compositions on nature where Iceland
ic landscape and the Nordic light played an important role.
Nína started studying art in Iceland
and moved to Copenhagen
in 1935 where she studied art at the Royal Academy of Art. After graduating from the Academy in 1939 she spent time studying in Paris
and was quite taken by the city. In 1942 she moved to New York
to study at the Art Students League of New York
and develop her art further. There she took an active part in the city’s art scene.
In 1949 she married Alfred L. Copley
(alter ego: L. Alcopley). Later that year she went to Iceland
for a short visit. There she was informed that she was not able to return to the USA because she was suspected of being a Communist sympathizer.
During her exile from the USA she lived in various places in Europe
, Iceland
being one of them. Copley joined her in Paris
where they lived for a few years together with their daughter, born 1951. During those years Nina kept on making and practicing her art, exhibiting in many places and traveling through Europe
. They returned to New York
in 1959 where Nína continued to work on her art and exhibiting mostly in Europe
. During all her years abroad Nína kept on exhibiting in Iceland
and was her input very valuable to the art society in Iceland
.
Seyðisfjörður
Seyðisfjörður is a town and municipality in the Eastfjords of Iceland at the innermost point of the fjord of the same name.As of January 2011, the town has 668 inhabitants....
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
.
Nína Tryggvadóttir is one of Iceland's most important abstract expressionist artists and one of very few Icelandic female artists of her generation. Mainly working in painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
she also did paper collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
, stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
work, mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
and more. She frequently based her compositions on nature where Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic landscape and the Nordic light played an important role.
Nína started studying art in Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
and moved to Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
in 1935 where she studied art at the Royal Academy of Art. After graduating from the Academy in 1939 she spent time studying in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and was quite taken by the city. In 1942 she moved to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to study at the Art Students League of New York
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
and develop her art further. There she took an active part in the city’s art scene.
In 1949 she married Alfred L. Copley
Alfred L. Copley
Alfred Lewin Copley was a German-American medical scientist and an artist at the New York School in the 1950s. As an artist he worked under the name L. Alcopley. He is best known as an artist for his abstract expressionist paintings, and as a scientist for his work in the field of hemorheology...
(alter ego: L. Alcopley). Later that year she went to Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
for a short visit. There she was informed that she was not able to return to the USA because she was suspected of being a Communist sympathizer.
During her exile from the USA she lived in various places in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
being one of them. Copley joined her in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
where they lived for a few years together with their daughter, born 1951. During those years Nina kept on making and practicing her art, exhibiting in many places and traveling through Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. They returned to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in 1959 where Nína continued to work on her art and exhibiting mostly in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. During all her years abroad Nína kept on exhibiting in Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
and was her input very valuable to the art society in Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
.
External links
- http://thearthistoryjournal.blogspot.com/2010/12/nina-tryggvadottir.html
- http://www.art.is/adal/ninat/nintna1.htm
- http://english.umm.is/UMMenglish/Artists/Abouttheartist/463
- http://www.listasafnreykjavikur.is/Kjarvalsstadir/syningar/aukasidur/listasafn_islands_aeviferill.en.shtml
- http://www.me.is/ERLSAM/Comenius03/nina/Nína%20littla.htm (In Icelandic)
- http://www.me.is/ERLSAM/Comenius03/nina/inde.htm (In Icelandic)