Nikolai Astrup

Nils Christian Astrup (grandson of the artist) 
By descent from the above to the present owner

Oslo, Kunstnernes Hus, 1955, no. 158A

cf. Øystein Loge, Oda Wildhagen Gjessing, Kari Greve, Nikolai Astrup Woodcuts, Norway, 2010, pp. 96-99, no. 9, A Night in June in the Garden, the series discussed; five other impressions illustrated

The sheet has not been laid down, but is hinged to the mount along the upper edge. The work is in very good condition, with strong fresh colours, and ready to hang. Presented frame and glazed, the extreme edges of the sheet covered by the mat.
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In comparison to lithography and etching, Astrup believed the possibilities of woodblock printing to be 'endless', especially enjoying the fact that in the woodblock process and the technique of printing that he employed, every print was different, to the extent that each impression was invariably unique, akin to an elaborate monotype. 

As a print maker Astrup was completely self-taught, developing a technique for woodcuts that was both highly accomplished and extremely original. To begin with he intended them for friends, often as gifts to thank them for services rendered. But as Astrup developed both his skill and his liking for the medium they became highly prized, and much sought after. 

The subjects he chose for his woodcuts became interchangeable: they could derive from paintings, but equally his paintings might also derive from woodcuts. The present work is based on his painting of Light Night in June in Jølster of 1905 (Loge 1986, p. 299, K42).

He used carefully selected materials - local wood from his native Jølster, possibly alder, pine or pear for his blocks, and high quality paper sourced either from Japan or England for printing onto. Once the blocks were carved, he would apply oil paint with a paint brush to the woodblock, inking each block individually for each impression, and use the 'Japanese method' of transferring the colour by laying the paper onto the woodblock. This involved rubbing the back of the paper either with his hands or with an implement of his devising, typically a piece of wood covered with rags. Between colours and printing from each block he would leave the impression to dry, sometimes hastening the process by drying it on his stove. Once he had printed all the different blocks, he invariably then touched up each completed impression by hand, painting in details or intensifying colours. The result of this somewhat homespun but carefully crafted and highly individualised printing method is that no two woodcuts printed from the same set of blocks by Astrup are ever the same. As evident when comparing the present impression to one in the National Museum, Oslo, each has its differences in tonalities, colour range, and details, to the extent that each can be considered a unique impression (fig. 1). For the considerable variances in impressions that Astrup achieved when printing the present subject see: Loge, Gjessing & Greve, pp. 96-99).

It is clear in a letter Astrup wrote to Hans Jacob Meyer in 1921 the considerable lengths he went to when taking an impression, and how in his mind each of his woodcuts was a work of art in its own right: 'I have done everything in my power to print this woodcut "beautifully" and I let it dry almost between every single block change (7 blocks) but one obviously does not always produce one's best work when one goes to the most trouble either. Anyway, I was quite pleased with the impression myself.' In the same letter Astrup explains the subject and what has inspired him: '...most people have believed that the 'red mountain' in the background is lit up by the "red rays of the setting sun". This is incorrect. It is the "red" tone present at midnight (in the latter half of June) and which is often seen on the south side of a mountainous village. It is presumably the same phenomenon as that which the Swiss call "the glow of the Alps."' (quoted in Loge, Gjessing & Greve, p. 96.)