On the second floor, you can see 12 drawings featuring motifs from Jomfruland. The island lies about ten kilometers off the coast of Kragerø, and Kittelsen traveled there in April 1893 to draw. The motifs are mostly idyllic landscapes, created using charcoal, colored pencils, or watercolor.

Kittelsen was inspired by legends, poems, and folk tales about mythical forest creatures, as well as a long poem about Jomfruland from 1696. The magistrate of Kragerø, Roland Knudssøn, had described the island facing the sea in verse. The poem begins like this:

How Jomfruland, overshadowed by the sea,
Was first inhabited by the subterranean folk,
And later lay hidden for many good years—
An old tale that lives in village lore appears.

It is called “the good land” by men of the sea,
Where once lived three maidens, wild and free,
Who never gave their virtue to any man,
And so the island was named Jomfruland.

Here, you’ll learn the story and see reproductions of the drawings. The originals are carefully preserved by the National Museum.
Welcome to a fairytale-inspired art break with us.