A View Down Akersgate, Oslo

William H. Johnson, A View Down Akersgate, Oslo, ca. 1935, oil on burlap, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.930
Copied William H. Johnson, A View Down Akersgate, Oslo, ca. 1935, oil on burlap, 25 1⁄4 x 31 1⁄4 in. (64.2 x 79.4 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.930

Artwork Details

Title
A View Down Akersgate, Oslo
Artist
Date
ca. 1935
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
25 1⁄4 x 31 1⁄4 in. (64.2 x 79.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the Harmon Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on burlap
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture Exterior — religious — church
  • Cityscape — Norway — Akersgate
  • Figure group
  • Cityscape — street
Object Number
1967.59.930
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1967.59.930

Artwork Description

This view shows two imposing churches in the center of Oslo, Norway: the copper-domed Trinity Church and Saint Olav’s Church in the background. Hints of blossoms evoke a change of season, and William H. Johnson painted intense, expressionistic hues in the buildings and streets, perhaps to capture the emotional undercurrents of a gray, late-winter day.