NIKOLAI ASTRUP
1880 Bremanger -1928 Førde
MARA
black charcoal on tracing paper, 300 x 246 mm
provenance:
Peder Severin (1872-1946) and Aagot Kramer (1884-1980), Norway;
Per Kramer Junior, 1913-1983, Norway;
Blomqvist auction no 4909-2;
private collection, Norway;
Skanfil Auksjoner, October 12th 2025, lot 1027.
exhibited:
Bergen, Bergens Kunstforening, Nikolai Astrup 1880-1928: maleri, tegning, grafik, March 14th – April 7th 1980, no 172.
In Scandinavian folklore, the Mara is not a conventional fairy-tale witch but rather a nocturnal spirit or demonic figure. The mara was thought to be responsible for the terrifying sensation of being unable to move or breathe during sleep. The creature would sit on the chest of a sleeping person at night, causing suffocation, anxiety, and oppressive dreams. The modern English word “nightmare”ultimately derives from this concept.
Around 1900, dreams, visions, and folk belief assumed an important place in Scandinavian art. Many artists of this period sought to articulate a distinct national identity and therefore turned to local traditions, legends, and rural life for inspiration. In Norway this renewed interest brought attention to traditional tales of trolls, witches, and nocturnal spirits. Such subjects were valued not merely as folklore but also as a means of expressing the mysterious and spiritual qualities associated with the Norwegian landscape and with rural culture.
At the same time, the art world was strongly influenced by Symbolism, an international movement concerned with inner experience, dreams, and the subconscious. Scandinavian artists combined these ideas with their own cultural traditions. For artists such as Nikolai Astrup, motifs drawn from nature and from folk belief—such as midsummer bonfires, witches, or the mara—functioned not only as narrative elements but also as symbols of fear, longing, memory, and dream experience. As a result, everyday landscapes and scenes from village life often acquired a visionary or dreamlike atmosphere.
Mara comes from the collection of the Norwegian graphic designer Per Kramer Jr. His mother, Aagot Kramer, was a painter, while his father, Per Kramer, also painted occasionally. The family maintained a friendship with Astrup and assembled a significant collection of his works. Aagot Kramer began her artistic career relatively late, around the age of forty, after having been encouraged by Astrup during the summer of 1921 in Jølster, where he offered her informal instruction. She made her debut in 1922 at an exhibition at the Bergen Art Association and was later accepted to the Autumn Exhibition. She remained active in the artistic life of Bergen throughout her life and was honored with the King’s Medal of Merit in gold on her ninetieth birthday.
The Norwegian artist Nikolai Astrup is known for his vivid depictions of the landscape and rural life of western Norway. Born in 1880 and raised in the remote region of Jølster, the dramatic natural environment became a lasting source of inspiration throughout his career. Astrup studied art in Oslo (then Kristiania) at the Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry from 1899 to 1901. He later traveled to Paris in 1901 and again in 1911, and to Berlin in 1907, where he encountered developments in modern European art and the avant-garde of the early twentieth century. Despite these international experiences, Astrup remained closely connected to Jølster, where he lived and worked for most of his life. His paintings and woodcuts combine elements of symbolism and expressionism with imagery drawn from local traditions and folklore. Today he is regarded as one of Norway’s most significant artists from the turn of the century.