Workshops at: 
The Norwegian Seamen’s Church
317 East 52nd street, NY

Instructor: Helga D Storbekken, Oslo, Norway

Learn about Norwegian Birds

Children : Ages 8 -14 
Number of students: 10
Sessin time: 1 day, 2 ½ hours, May 21^st 2014

During the course of Drawing and Sculpture Workshop:

Drawing Blind: Two warm-up exercises –Drawing is seeing

We begin with a fun exercise and get to know each other.
Follow Helga’s (course instructor) finger without looking at the paper!
Watch as she draws her own face in the air. Suddenly there it is an amusing portrait of Helga, the instructor.

Drawing Blind Portraits of each other

We will make living lines with a pencil.
Sit in pairs opposite each other.

These two exercises are good for visualizing what we want to draw.
What do the eyes, hair, nose, mouth and throat look like?
The pencil in the hand moves in step with what the eyes see, without looking at the paper or your hands.
As you draw each other, watch and see how the drawings come to life. We don’t take ourselves so seriously
Blind drawing requires concentration and at the same time it is lots of fun!

For more information about courses please click on following brouchers.

Drawing with Pencil and pastels

Participants will be asked to select a picture of a small Norwegian bird. They will then be asked the draw the bird, and to pay close attention to the bird’s shape size and color, in preparation for making a sculpture.

Making the sculpture of the bird

Participants will use clay, polystyrene, plaster of Paris and steel wire to make their sculptures. Each will be provided with a polystyrene “body” of a bird. Layers of air-dried clay will then be added, followed by a final layer of plaster of Paris. When the clay and plaster of Paris are completely dry, the bird is ready to be painted. The finished sculpture can then be set aside on a shelf to dry.

Autumn 2014

Maya's School of Music and Performing Art has recently opened in New York City. The school will gradually expand the educational offerings to include classes in:

• Drawing and Sculpture
• Courses in resealing (rosemaling, traditional Norwegian rose painting).

Norwegian rosemaling

Rosemaling, the decorative folk painting of Norway is today taught in many areas of Europe and the USA. You can take a course at Mayas School of Performing Arts in New York City.

We will arrange courses over 4 days, usually from Thursday to Sunday.

Read more about rosemaling below.

Pease don’t hesitate to contact us should you have any questions.

You can reach us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">.

» Teaching regulations
» Prices

Trygve Lie Gallery was established to contribute to the promotion of Norwegian, Norwegian-American and Scandinavian art to a broad audience in the city of New York.

What is Rosemaling?

Norwegian Rosemaling or rose painting, originated in the Scandinavian Rosemaling countries of Finland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark.The rose was considered to be the sign of Christ. Rosemaling was at its zenith from 1700 until about 1850. This painting style art reflects the influences of the French Rococo and Baroque styles. Initially, artists decorated the homes of the nobility, however, a modified folk art soon spread to other classes. Due to the isolation of the northern Scandinavian communities, rosemaling developed independently in each region resulting in many unique styles. Emigrants to America brought the art with them. Some of which came be found in places such as the Norwegian American Museum in Decorah, Iowa.

How is Rosemaling Created?

Rosemaling designs are created from C and S strokes and generally characterized by flowing lines and scroll, imaginative, fanciful flowers, and subtle colors - earthy red, green, white, yellow, and blue. These strokes formed stylized roses and acanthus leaves which were the primary forms. The designs might also include figures, community scenes, animals and script lettering. Rosemaling is very 2 dimensional in design. To create the illusion of depth in the design, the thickness of the scroll lines varied from thick to thin. Crosshatching, - which consists of overlapping lines, was not only used as an accent but also to fill in the design and add texture. Influences came from valley to valley as well as other countries.

The various forms of Rosemaling were named after the towns or regions in which they originated. One of the most widely used was known as Telemark. Soon Rosemaling appeared on essential items such as plates, bowls, spoons and furniture. When the Norwegians emigrated to America, they brought their art with them. One important Norwegian tradition was the bride's Rosemaled dowry chest. These beautiful chests became the couple's most valuable possession since it could hold so much. Most early decorative painters were self-taught. These artists used their art to decorate their homes. No two items were the same. Therefore, a family's possessions could be identified by it's unique patterns.

Early American painters were self-taught, remembering the decorations painted by skilled craftsmen back in their homelands.They began to change their own household wares and become their own decorators. No two items were identical. Families could be identified by their unique style and approach to the technique. As Rosemaling began dying out in Norway, it continued to thrive in the American Midwest up to the Victorian era. In the 1970's, Rosemaling was rediscovered and now enjoys a resurgence in popularity.

Different kinds of Rosemaling

• Telemark- The most well know of the styles. It has graceful "c" and "s" lines, elegant stems, overlapping scrolls, and imaginary flowers. Layers of semitransparent color are used to achieve an asymmetrical, light and airy feel.
• Hallingdal (Hallmark)- Hallingdal lies to the north of the Telemark area of Norway, a beautiful valley in the Buskerud Fylke. There were many painters from this culturally-rich area. They painted symmetrical designs with bold colors, avoided a lot of detail, and used dark bold outlining usually bold and bright with little shading.
• Rogaland- known for its stylized flowers that take precedence over the scrolls in a design. These arrangements are balanced with a symmetrical geometric design radiating out from a central point.
• American Rogaland- Very similar to Norwegian Rogaland and is very precise and symmetrical. Rigid mirror-like quality.
• Valdres- often painted in blue tones with stylized landscapes, folded flowers or larger flowers in clusters hanging on ropes.
• Gudbrandsdalen- closely resembles woodcarving with elegant intertwining scrolls.
• OS- Only style painted on a pure white background.