Nikolai Astrup

Nikolai Astrup (30 August 1880 – 21 January 1928) was a Norwegian painter.

Biography

Astrup was born in Bremanger in Nordfjord, but grew up in Ålhus in Jølster where his father worked as a priest. He was the great-grandson of Nils Astrup, a one-term member of parliament. His father Christian wanted Nikolai, the oldest son, to become a priest as well, but Nikolai was more interested in drawing and painting. He studied these subjects in Oslo where he was a student at Backer popular school of painting.

He later lived for a while in Paris and in Germany before returning to Jølster. He got married there and had 8 children. The economy was very tight and he struggled with poor health. Astrup died of pneumonia in 1928 at the age of 47 in Jølster's neighbouring municipality Førde.

Astrup preferred clear, strong colors and usually made landscape art depicting his surroundings in Jølster. Having spent the majority of his life in Jølster, the Nordic landscape proved a strong influence and through his paintings he sought 'a national "visual language" that evoked the traditions and folklore of his homeland'. His paintings describe an intimate interaction between nature and the built environment, characterized by bold lines and distinctive rich color. Astrup is regarded as a neo-romantic painter, but he also worked with woodcuts. Nikolai Astrup is looked upon as one of the greatest Norwegian artists from the early 1900s, and several of his paintings have been sold at auctions for approximately $500,000 USD. Astrup's works have been likened to those of his contemporary Edvard Munch, though Astrup's style has been described as being 'so much brighter – not just in colour, but also in mood'.

Nikolai Astrup (politician)

Nikolai Astrup (born 12 June 1978) is a Norwegian politician representing the Conservative Party (Høyre) for Oslo.

Astrup was elected leader of the Conservative Party in Oslo in 2012 and has previously been leader of the Oslo Norwegian Young Conservatives. After the election in 2013, Astrup was appointed as vice-chair of the Conservative Party Parliamentary Group. Prior to his election to parliament, he worked as political adviser for the Conservative Party parliamentary group and political adviser to the Governing Mayor of Oslo. Astrup holds a master's degree in European Politics and Governance and a bachelor's degree in International Relations, both from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Between 2001 and 2008 he was the editor of the conservative periodical Minerva.

Ahead of the 2009 election for parliament, Astrup was nominated as the Conservative Party's fourth candidate for Oslo, considered the last safe seat. He defeated Inge Lønning in the nomination. Ahead of the election in 2013 he was nominated as the second cadidate for Oslo, behind the Minister of Defence, Ine Eriksen Søreide. Due to his relatively young age, he is considered a rising star in the party.