Who created the Norway's Trolls? A short introduction to Kittelsen and Werenskiold.
Channel: Kim Diaz Holm
Date: 01/06/2023

The art of Theodor Kittelsen and Erik Werenskiold gave a visual look to Norways fairy tales, when they illustrated the editions of Asbjørnen & Moe's Folkeeventyr (folk tales) in the late 1800's. Their art has become a part of the Norwegian identity, especially their trolls, influencing the likes of John Bauer, and their presence is still felt in artists like Brian Froud and David Thierree @davidthierree5199 Follow David at IG at https://www.instagram.com/davidthierree/

This video is a brief introduction to the art of Norwegian trolls and fairy tales, from a personal viewpoint as an artist. 

A couple of notes: At one point in the video I mention that Erik Werenskiold didn't have drawing the trolls as his calling. I don't mean to underestimate his contribution by this statement, as he took illustrating the fairy tales extremely seriously, and dedicated years of his life to researching and traveling the country to find the essence of the tales for his illustrations. But unlike Kittelsen, it never became his primary artistic identity. 

The work of labeling every piece of art in the video was something I tried, but ended up not having time for. So all the artists are introduced in text once, and then it's generally indicated by the context who's art we're looking at. 

When researching this video, I also found that despite Kittelsen and Werenskiolds art being long in the public domain, it's surprisingly hard to find hi-res copies of their art. A few different websites promised hi-res images beyond a paywall, essentially making this vital part of history only available for those with the funds to pay for it. These images were also claimed to be Copyright protected, which I can only assume means that the sites claim they own the photographs of the art, not the art itself. This is essentially the attempted murder of the idea of a Public Domain. 

Because of this, I chose to use low-quality images whenever I couldn't find anything else. Sorry about that. 

Anyhow... it's more important than ever to release art in a form that is free for all, for all time. That's why I release my art under a Creative Commons Attribution license. If you think this is cool, please consider supporting my free art, either by using it for free, by buying art and merch from me, or supporting on Patreon. 

Music by the marvelous Leiv Reed. Follow him  @LeivReed



THE TOOLS I USE:
All these tools are things I use myself. That being said, there’s so many great brands, big and small, that produce amazing alternatives, and you can also get them from other stores than Amazon. However, if you use the affiliate links below, I get a small cut. 

All of the sets recommended below will include color or brush variations that might be superfluous. I tend to buy both sets and individual items, because I like the flexibility. But on a budget, just get the one item you need. 

Daler-Rowney Aquafine Synthetic Brush Set: https://amzn.to/4a7WLyb
(Round Brush size 4 most important)

Manuscript Chinese Calligraphy Goat Hair Brush set:https://amzn.to/4bT5QfD 

Pentel Color Brush Black: https://amzn.to/48slfk9 

Pentel Color Brush Set: https://amzn.to/42TRVBX 

Pentel Color Brush Black Refill: https://amzn.to/3uNuvl9 

Talens Indian Ink: https://amzn.to/49pf1D0 

Talens Ecoline Liquid Water Color Set: https://amzn.to/49ryG5l 

Dr. Ph Martin’s Radiant Liquid Watercolor Set: https://amzn.to/49ss8n6 

Golden High Flow Acrylics Black: https://amzn.to/48tY9cZ

Golden Fluid Acrylic White: https://amzn.to/49PDSzD 

Golden Fluid Acrylic Set: https://amzn.to/49LEFBJ 

Fabriano Sketching paper, can hold some ink: https://amzn.to/49ryT8D

Fabriano Hot-Press Watercolor paper: https://amzn.to/431Huws 

Fabriano Cold-Press Watercolor paper: https://amzn.to/3wwUQo8 

Faber-Castell B3 Graphite Pencil: https://amzn.to/3IdCYkH 



BOOKS & INSPIRATION:
I’ve learned to draw from a lot of books, most of them on drawing and penciling comics. But the two most important for my own artistic journey were probably: 

How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way: https://amzn.to/3IghYtS 

Bridgman’s Complete guide To Drawing From Life: https://amzn.to/3IeUd5f 
(I’m not satisfied with the print, but great book still)

None of them have to do with inking directly with a brush, but they lay the groundwork for most of what I do.