'Astrup paints dialect' - Kinck

By now you have to reserve a ticket in the museum and also leave your address here.

This Saturday I used to visit the Astrup-tunet.

Nikolai Astrup (1880 - 1928) was a Norwegian painter, who was mainly known for his choice of colors and the depiction of western Norway.

Since there are hardly any foreign tourists in the country at the moment, I was the only one who wanted a guided tour in English and therefore I got a private tour.

At first everyone lived together in a small leaky shed with a fireplace. Later they moved into a larger cabin and finally the family built a house, piece by piece. The studio on the upper floor had very large windows, which was very unusual for that time.

It was also interesting to learn that the color white used to indicate wealth. Houses that were painted in white belonged to those who had money. That's why some only painted the street side of their house. The pantry was painted blue back then. The mosquitoes are attracted to this color and the minerals that are in the color kill them.

After visiting the residential houses, I was allowed to visit the gallery where the paintings are exhibited. If you want to see a really beautiful painting, you can search for "Juninatt kl. 3" from the year 1900.

The quote "Astrup paints dialect" by Kinck tells the childhood of Astrup. His father was a pastor and forced his son to speak very formally and in Danish at home, as befits the upper class. But outside the house he spoke the local Jølster dialect. And his paintings are often from his immediate surroundings, the Jølster Lake. A beautiful environment where it was fun to drive around by car. I even saw the outskirts of the Jostedalsbreen, a large glacier.

Spontaneously, I decided to drive around the lake once. Several times I had to stop because a very large group of goats was on the road and wanted to cross it. Some goats even came to the window and wanted to nibble on the mirror.

On my way home, I passed the well-known Huldrefossen, but because there were cows on the meadow, I couldn't get closer.

In the evening I was invited to barbecue with Gro, the school principal, and she showed me beautiful pictures of places in Norway where she has been and where she grew up.