Featured Artist: Theodor Kittelsen
Theodor Kittelsen was a Norwegian artist in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He is known mainly for his illustrations of trolls and other fictional creatures, although he published several books of drawings and illustrations over the course of his life.
His book Svartedauen, which depicted the Black Death running its course through Norway, should be of particular interest to metal fans. The sparse, black and white illustrations often use a hideous old woman or flocks of birds to symbolize the plague’s path. Burzum has used several of Kittelsen’s illustrations for album covers and liner notes, including many taken from Svartedauen.
Aside from his sometimes dark subject matter, Kittlesen’s passion for the natural world and his homeland of Norway aligns well with many bands of today. He wrote:
“Most of all I am fascinated by mystery, fabulousness and majesty of our nature. If I do not combine my work with careful observation of nature, then, I am afraid my senses will involuntary be stupefied.”
For more details about Kittlesen’s life as well as an extensive gallery of his work, check out Kittelsen.ru. They have several high-quality scans from the Svartedauen book here. This Kittelsen site also has a very extensive gallery of his work.
