Behold the gaze of Georg Brandes, forever captured in bronze. This Georg Brandes Bust stands as a tribute to a man who shook the foundations of Scandinavian literature. The Georg Brandes Bust, sculpted by Max Klinger, was erected in 1993. It is located at Georg Brandes Plads in Copenhagen.
Georg Brandes was born in Copenhagen on February 4, 1842. He died there on February 19, 1927. Brandes dedicated his life to liberating Denmark from cultural isolation. He wanted to bring liberal political and cultural trends from Western Europe to his country.
Brandes graduated from the University of Copenhagen in 1864. He travelled throughout Europe. In Paris, he met influential critics and philosophers. Hippolyte Taine, Ernest Renan, and John Stuart Mill shaped his thinking.
In 1871, Brandes began a series of lectures. These lectures became his famous work “Main Currents in 19th Century Literature”. He urged writers to reject Romanticism’s fantasies. He encouraged them to embrace progressive ideas and social reform. Brandes believed literature should serve modern society.
Brandes befriended many Scandinavian writers. Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, and August Strindberg were among them. He became a leader of the naturalistic movement. His ideas sparked controversy. Conservative Danes called him an “atheist Jew”.
Denied a professorship at the University of Copenhagen, Brandes moved to Berlin in 1877. He lived there until 1883. During this time, he continued to write and publish his scholarly studies.
Brandes wrote about Søren Kierkegaard, Ferdinand Lassalle, and Ludvig Holberg. His critical works include “Men of the Modern Breakthrough” and “Danish Poets”. Later in life, Brandes developed a philosophy of aristocratic radicalism. This was influenced by Friedrich Nietzsche. He wrote biographies of Shakespeare, Goethe, and Voltaire.
In 1902, Georg Brandes returned to Denmark as a professor at the University of Copenhagen. He remained a controversial figure. He denounced tyranny and reaction. His book “Jesus, a Myth” created many enemies.
Max Klinger captured Brandes’ intellectual intensity in the bronze Georg Brandes Bust. The location of the Georg Brandes Bust is Georg Brandes Plads, 1307 Copenhagen. The Georg Brandes Bust serves as a reminder of his enduring influence. It stands as a symbol of courage.