Michael Ancher (b. Bornholm 1849, d. Skagen 1927)
Bonatzi and Merry Elsie. Signed with monogram and dated 1904. 55×66 cm.
On the stretcher an old exhibition label.
Bonatzi and Elsie were two well-known people in Skagen. The painters often used them as models. Josef Bonatzi (1845–1913) was a Bohemian shoemaker who came to Skagen in 1885. He built a house “Lyrehuset”, of what he could find of materials. After his death the house was used for the Midsummer bonfire. Merry Elsie Hellesen (1842–1920) was a berry picker and a maid. She picked berries for the Ancher, the Locher and the Brøndum families. She lost her sanity when her fiancé drowned a few days before their wedding.
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Paintings, 24 November 2015