The Eikaas Gallery showcases a considerable portion of Ludvig Eikaas’ (1920-2010) creative work – which can also be found in Copenhagen, New York, Paris, Florence and other Norwegian museums. The Jølster native is considered one of the most influential Norwegian artists of the post-war era, carving his place as a modernist pioneer from the late 1940s onwards.
Modernists rejected the ideal of rendering detailed depictions of reality. Instead, they focused on exploring notions, form, colours, textures and composition.
You will soon notice that the painter, graphic artist, illustrator and sculptor Eikaas was an exploratory and spontaneous artist who never settled on any particular technique or form of expression. He was for instance one the first artists to use hard plastic for sculpturing. The Eikaas Gallery offers rotating exhibitions selected from our collection of over 850 individual pieces. Eikaas is particularly well known for his woodcuts, and was one of few post-war era artists to work extensively with portraits. A third of the collection therefore consists of portraits, of which around 70 are self-portraits! Over 100 are portraits of prominent people from Norwegian cultural and social life in the 1950s-1990s. Chances are you’ll encounter a few of these, and perhaps you’ll snicker a little at how he chose to depict various people.
From the 1970s, Eikaas became a professor at, and subsequently rector of, the National Academy of Art in Oslo. He married esteemed textile artist Synnøve Anker Aurdal (1908-2000) in 1949. After he turned 80, he was knighted (Knight 1st Class) in the Order of St. Olav, in recognition of his art and dissemination skills.
The Eikaas Gallery is located by Jølstravatnet along the E39, with its own beach, and is accessible to wheelchair users. The gift shop offers a selection of prints, postcards, t-shirts, books and other items. You can enjoy some local snacks and drinks on our café terrace.
Top image: Ludvig Eikaas’ famous self-portrait “Jeg” (“Me”) and two portraits of his wife, textile artist Synnøve Anker Aurdal. (Photo: Thomas Bickhardt/Bickfoto, CC-BY-2.0)
