All in the Families

by Laurann Gilbertson, Vesterheim Chief Curator

Spouted tankard (tutekanne) painted by Herbrand Sata of Ål, Hallingdal, Norway, 1787.

Vesterheim LC1528—Luther College Collection.

Vesterheim recently received a trunk painted by Embrik Bæra, who came from a talented family of artists in Ål, Hallingdal, Norway. Embrik, his brother Nils Bæra, and their father Herbrand Sata were all rosemalers. With the recent and generous gift from Joan Losen, Vesterheim now has examples of all three painters.

Herbrand Engebretsen Sata (1753-1830) is considered to be the most significant of the early painters in Hallingdal. His earliest work showed influence from the rococo style, popular in urban Norway at the time. A spouted tankard at Vesterheim, dated 1787, was done by Sata in the rococo style, characterized by shell and plant motifs in asymmetrical arrangements.

Soon after he completed this tankard, his painting took on more of the characteristics of the older baroque style in symmetrical ornamentation and florals. Sata’s style further developed into what is now known as Hallingdal style: flowers in profile or shown from the top, black leaves and foliage,

Spouted tankard (tutekanne) painted by Herbrand Sata, 1804.

Vesterheim LC0807— Gift of Hallingdal Folkemuseum.

Ale bowl painted by Nils Bæra of Ål, Hallingdal, 1836.

Trunk painted by Embrik Bæra of Ål, Hallingdal, 1830. First belonged to Sigrid Olsdatter Stedje of Sogndal, Sogn og Fjordane. She and Torbjørn Nilsson Ylvisaker married in 1830.

Vesterheim 2012.041.001—Gift of Joan Losen in memory of Kari Ylvisaker Ness and Nora Hjermstad Fjeldstad.

strongly contrasting colors, and frequent use of an orange-red background color. A second tankard at Vesterheim shows Sata’s classic Hallingdal style.

Naturally, the early work of Nils Bæra (1785-1873) was greatly influenced by his father. Over time, he developed a colorful and creative personal style with distinctive line work. A bowl at Vesterheim demonstrates Nils’s preference for bright colors and fanciful plant motifs.

Embrik Bæra (1788-1876) was influenced by the work of both his father and brother. He was not as good a technician as his brother, but his work is even more imaginative. Herbrand and Nils used human and animal figures in their paintings, but Embrik is best known for biblical and other figurative scenes. The trunk, pictured above, shows a bride and groom on horses. The woman between them is Lady Fortuna from Roman mythology, a deity who controlled the fates of all humans. She is often depicted standing on a winged planet, emphasizing her extensive influence. Later in history, Fortuna became a fertility figure. Embrik likely selected her for the trunk to symbolically ensure the success of family and farm for the new couple.

Embrik Bæra was a prolific painter. As a young man, he took work in western Buskerud County, not far from Sogndal where the owner of the trunk lived. His first wife, Barbro Skjervheim Bæra, traveled with him and painted the backgrounds on his pieces. Perhaps she painted the background on this trunk [2012.041.001], which would mean that four members of Sata-Bæra family are represented in Vesterheim’s collection!

According to tradition, the trunk held the dowry of Sigrid Olsdatter Stedje, who married Torbjørn Nilsson Ylvisaker in 1830. Sigrid’s daughter, Kari Ylvisaker Ness, brought the trunk when she immigrated to Red Wing, Minnesota, with her three youngest children in 1871. Kari passed the trunk to her granddaughter, Nora Hjermstad Fjeldstad of Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1937 and Nora passed it to her daughter Sigrid Joan Fjeldstad Losen of Richmond, Virginia, in 1968. Joan Losen donated the trunk to Vesterheim in 2012.

Kari Ylvisaker Ness with her great-granddaughter Joan Fjeldstad Losen, about 1935. Vesterheim Archives.