Artwork
Ellen Roed, f. Jensen, kunstnerens moder
Ellen Roed, f. Jensen, kunstnerens moder is an oil painting by the Realist artist Jørgen Roed. It dates from 1849 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Overview
In 1849 Jørgen Roed, a noted Danish painter of the mid‑nineteenth century, produced an oil portrait of his mother, Ellen Roed (née Jensen). The canvas presents an elderly woman seated in a simple chair, her dark dress and white lace bonnet contrasting with a dimly lit backdrop that draws attention to her thoughtful expression.
Subject & Meaning
The sitter is portrayed in a moment of quiet reflection: her hands rest gently together on her lap, a book and a pair of spectacles lie nearby, suggesting literacy and contemplation. The aged features and distant gaze convey a sense of introspection, perhaps alluding to the personal reverence the artist held for his mother.
Technique & Style
Executed in the realist tradition of the Danish Golden Age, Roed employs a restrained palette and careful modeling of light to emphasize texture—the lace of the bonnet, the folds of the dress, the skin’s fine lines. The dark, almost muted background serves to isolate the figure, enhancing the three‑dimensional presence of the portrait.
History & Provenance
Since its creation, the painting has remained within Danish public collections, ultimately entering the holdings of Statens Museum for Kunst. It stands as a representative example of Roed’s portraiture, illustrating his skill in rendering intimate family subjects with the sober realism characteristic of his era.
Artist & collection
Artist
Jørgen Roed (13 January 1808 – 8 August 1888), Danish portrait and genre painter associated with the Golden Age of Danish Painting, was born in Ringsted to Peder Jørgensen Roed and wife, Ellen Hansdatter.
Cathrine Jensen, née Lorenzen, the Artist's Wife
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Portrait of a Woman, Called Héloïse Abélard
Cathrine Jensen, née Lorenzen, the Artist's Wife
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