Vilhelm Tetens, “Evening, Bathing Boys”, 1905, Oil on Canvas, Regional Psychiatric Center, Viborg, Denmark
Born on November 21, 1871 in Copenhagen, Vilhelm Tetens was a Dutch painter of still-life, architectural forms, and figurative works. He was a student of painter Malthe Odin Engelsted and studied at the Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler, Artists; Free Study School, under painter Kristian Zahrtmann. While at the school, Tetens developed friendships with painter and draftsman Christian Kongstad Petersen and the Norwegian painters Thorvald Erichsen and Oluf Wold-Torne.
In 1896, Vilhelm Tetens had his first exhibition in the city of Charlottenborg. Two years later he took a trip to Norway to visit his friend Oluf Wold-Torne. Despite the close friendship, Tetens work did not show the boldness of form and color that was present in the work of Wold-Torne. However, even at a young age, his portrait work showed an understanding of the medium and an empathy for the sitter. Tetens painted portraits of his friends Wold-Torne and Petersen in the 1890s which were done in the popular symbolist style.
In addition to his painting, Vilhelm Tetens was also a costume designer; his first assignment was in 1902 to design the costumes for Danish composer Carl Nielsen’s opera “Saul and David”. For a number of years after that, Tetens was the costume designer for the Royal Danish Theater in Copenhagen.
Between 1903 and 1919, Tetens produced several major works which include “The Family in the Green” executed in 1903; “Evening, Bathing Boys” in 1905; the “Young Man” in 1909, “Portrait of My Mother” in 1907; and the 1919 “Portrait of Professor Folberg” which was awarded an Exhibition Medal.
Vilhelm Tetens died in Hillerød, Denmark, on the 13th of January in 1957. His work is in the collections of the Museum at Koldinghus, the Statens Museum for Kunst, the Horsens Art Museum, and the Sorø Art Museum.