Fionn Wilson

In July 2018, I delivered two paintings of Swiss-born Danish composer Gunnar Berg (1909–1989) to the collection of The Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle. The museum houses the largest collection of portraits in Denmark. I’ve painted three portraits of Gunnar in total, the other now belongs to the collection of Jens Rossel, Gunnar Berg expert.

His is a fascinating life. A leading exponent of serialism in Denmark, he is considered to have written the first Danish serial piece, his Cosmogonie for two pianos, in 1952. During the German Occupation he was active in the Danish Resistance, and after the Liberation he engaged himself in music projects in the refugee camps in Denmark. In Paris in the late forties, he became part of the international modernist movement in post-War Europe, meeting with luminaries including Olivier Messiaen, John Cage and Karlheinz Stockhausen.

More information on Gunnar Berg can be found here:

https://edition-s.dk/composers/gunnar-berg

#portrait #painting #gunnarberg #denmark #composing #music #serialism #Frederiksborg Castle #portraiture #art #figurativeart #figurativepainting