“Gobeliner” a word you might associate with grand halls. But here we are before the Glostrup Gobeliner Painting. This artwork brings that sense of history to a more intimate scale.
Glostrup Gobeliner Painting is a testament to art’s evolving forms. It stands as a modern interpretation of a classic art form. The Gobeliner Painting was created in 2018. The artist is Stine Hvid.
Large tapestries called gobelins were common. They served as decoration and insulation in wealthy homes. Royal castles still have these tapestries. They depict historical and mythological scenes. You can find them in Rosenborg Castle’s Riddersalen. Also see them in Christian VII’s Palæ at Amalienborg.
Christiansborg Slot has 17 modern gobelins. They were a gift for Queen Margrethe’s 50th birthday. These tapestries tell over 1000 years of Danish and world history. They include the Viking age, the Middle Ages, and the Reformation. Also, they show noble rule and the 1800s. Finally, they get to World War II, the present, and the future. Bjørn Nørgaard designed them. French weavers made them.
The royal family appears in the gobelins. Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik stand with their dogs. This is on the “Present” tapestry. The princes are on the “Future” tapestry. The Crown Prince wears red and white, Denmark’s colors. Prince Joachim’s green symbolizes his farming at Schackenborg.
It took ten years to weave the gobelins. Thirty weavers worked full-time. The tapestries were installed for Queen Margrethe’s 60th birthday in 2000. She gave them to the Danish state. She wanted them to belong to the nation.
The Glostrup Gobeliner Painting offers a fresh perspective. It invites us to appreciate how artistic traditions are reinterpreted. These reinterpretations connect us to the past in new ways. As you stand here consider the power of art. Consider its ability to transform and endure. Think about how it speaks to us across time.