Oluf Høst was the only member of the
Bornholm school of paintersThe Bornholm school of painters started to take shape towards the beginning of the 20th century on the Danish island of Bornholm when a number of artists developed a distinctive style of classic modernism, inspired by the island's unique landscapes and light...
who was a real Bornholmer. Although he had studied in Copenhagen, he returned to the Danish island of
BornholmBornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea located to the east of the rest of Denmark, the south of Sweden, and the north of Poland. The main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. Tourism is...
in 1929 where he remained with his family until he died. Bognemark, the little farmhouse near Gudhjem was one of Høst's favourite motifs. From 1935 on, he painted the farm some 200 times under varying conditions at different times of year, often in accordance with the particular mood he happened to be in.
Life and work
Oluf Høst attended various schools of art in
CopenhagenCopenhagen 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...
including the Academy of Fine Arts. He also studied under
Harald GiersingHarald Giersing , a Danish painter, was instrumental in developing the classic modernism movement in Denmark around 1910-1920...
where he was introduced to
expressionismExpressionism was a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas...
. Cézanne became his greatest inspiration although Høst explained how his work was influenced distinctively by the Nordic tradition. With the changing seasons and weather, his work differed considerably from that of Césanne.
After Høst had returned to Bornholm, he concentrated on local buildings and landscapes including views of Gudhjem, the
smokehouseA smokehouse is a building where meat or fish is cured with smoke. The finished product might be stored in the building, sometimes for a year or more.-History:...
s, and of course, the Bognemark farm. He also painted many sunsets as seen from the farmhouse looking out across the water towards the Swedish coast.
Høst received a number of honours including the
Eckersberg MedalThe Eckersberg Medal is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts...
, Denmark's highest award for painting.