BIO

CONCERT PIANIST

A pioneering concert pianist who studied with Franz Liszt at seventeen, toured America, and built a life as a professional musician at a time when few women could do so. Originally from Bergen, as far as the genealogical story goes, a cousin of Edward Grieg and a relative to Ludvig Holberg, she came from one of the city’s wealthiest grocer families and was a prodigy from an early age, showing remarkable proficiency at the piano by four and giving her first professional concert at seven. She married a violinist from the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, got divorced, and then married a merchant in Denmark with whom she had two children. In her old age, she settled in Gudhjem on Bornholm, drawn to the landscape because it reminded her most of Norway. There she lived at the same time as the Danish painter Oluf Høst, who was apparently rather afraid of her after she had scolded him at some point — or so the family story goes. She was known for holding soirées where the piano was played and tea was served, although I suspect there may occasionally have been something stronger on offer too.

PAINTER

A gifted painter and, at least in my memory, a formidable eccentric - I remember her hair as curly and wild. She had a strong artistic temperament and a life that seems to contain a story I would love to know more about, particularly the paintings she made and the artist she was. From what I understand, she kept her artistic life somewhat private, which makes me all the more curious about what she painted and how she experienced her life as an artist. I didn't know her well as a person, but I know that when she told her mother, the pianist, that she wanted to become a painter and study at the academy, her mother's answer was that it was silly and that she should get herself a husband. However, she did go to the art academy. She was somewhat older than my grandfather, whom she first saw in a painting by a colleague. She insisted on meeting him and marrying him, and together they had two girls. My mother remembered her as quite charming around other people, and as someone who planted the roses that are still growing today. Perhaps that is what remains most tangibly of her: something she planted, cared for and left behind, still flowering many years later.

PAINTER & MUSICIAN

An accomplished painter who moved early from figuration into abstraction, and a musician who played the piano exquisitely. He married the painter Siegfriede Geelmúyden, and together they built a life between Copenhagen and Bornholm. He and his family lived five months of the year in Copenhagen and the rest on Bornholm, where he had his studio and homeschooled their daughters. The rhythm between the two places gave him both a city life and the space for his painting, family and music on Bornholm. He was a great tease, always ready to turn an ordinary moment into an opportunity for mischief, and he loved his routines: morning shave, breakfast, studio, nap, walk, dinner — more or less the same, every day, at the same time. What I remember best, though, is his shaving routine, which always resulted in him chasing my brother and me around the house until we cried, trying to kiss us. And his breakfast routine sits in my memory as scents: two slices of toast with butter, boiled eggs and a handful of tomatoes, followed by deep, dark, smoked tea with a dash of lemon. The breakfast and dark tea routines were eventually taken over by my mother too.

CONSERVATION ARCHITECT

With a particular attentiveness to the preservation, continuity and character of the built environment, she made parts of Denmark more beautiful through her work as a town planner. Known as Sorte - “Blackie” - as a child for her mountain of black, curly hair, she was homeschooled throughout her childhood and had no formal education until, in her early twenties, she decided she wanted to become an architect. She then completed her primary and secondary education and the examinations required to pursue her chosen path. She also had a wonderful instinct for making and cultivating - growing vegetables and fruit, cooking and baking, while tending beautiful roses and dahlias in her gardens. Inside the house, she created beauty through handmade prints on fabric, sewing them into pillows, tea coasters and curtains, while teaching sculpture, painting and drawing, and raising three children on her own. As a mother, she was practically present in the day-to-day, but unlike any other mother I knew. Her independence of thought and behaviour was fundamental to who she was.

MERCHANT & MAKER

A practical and resourceful merchant with a quirky sense of humour and a bulldozer of a temper. In negotiations, he was formidable - he knew how to navigate people and situations, particularly in business, and usually came away with the deal he wanted. He could build almost anything, and filled the garden with wonderful things for his two children, a boy and a girl: treehouses, an elevator, a zip line and all sorts of ingenious constructions. He was someone who liked to figure out how things worked and then find a way to improve them, often with whatever was at hand. Like my mother, he loved a beautiful home, but his talents were of a different kind - practical, inventive and hands-on. He was down to earth, kind and enormously helpful, and with him I had some of my most outspoken arguments, none of which ever destroyed the relationship. He could be furious one moment and ready to shake hands the next, always willing to forgive, forget and carry on.

TORCEDORA & CRAFTSWOMAN

A skilled cigar roller and gifted craftswoman, always making something with her hands - from porcelain painting, knitting and crochet to sewing. She could turn her hands to almost anything, decorating teapots, cups and saucers, crocheting blankets, napkins and lace, knitting clothes and making things for the home. She had two children, a boy and a girl, and looked after us after kindergarten while my parents were studying and later working, becoming a steady presence in our everyday lives. She once told me that when she came to pick me up, she would find me pacing back and forth like an old man, my hands behind my back. From her I inherited my fondness for rocking chairs, which gave a natural form to the rocking of my body that has been embedded in me since childhood. She was my rock in times of great unrest, and remains present in my daily life as someone with a great heart - caring, loving and deeply disciplined, especially through times that were not easy.

CONSERVATION ARCHITECT

A conservation architect who restored historic buildings in Africa, particularly churches in Ethiopia, with a sensitivity to their material and cultural context. He worked for twenty years at the African Development Bank, where he was an early adopter of computers and helped integrate them across the organisation. Originally a typographer and vivid photographer before becoming an architect, he was ambidextrous, an exceptional draughtsman and an inventive maker who could build almost anything, from furniture to ingenious household and workshop gadgets. He began working at eight, delivering milk, and remained practical and resourceful throughout his life. He was also a great letter writer, which he sent frequently throughout his travels, hence my introduction to and love for the art of writing letters. To me, he was a dad at a distance, but never an absent one. He made sure to see us several times a year, often for months at a time, and whenever possible outside those visits. Together with his wife, Inge, he created a space where we were always welcome. He was fundamental to my intellectual and artistic development.

PSYCHIATRIC NURSE

A psychiatric nurse who travelled alone to America early in her career, where she worked in an American hospital, and later at Montebello Rehabilitation in Spain, where my father was part of the team restoring it. Throughout her travels with my father, she continued working in schools as a nurse and educator. She took up sewing and became exceptionally skilled at it - all things hands - and later turned much of her attention to the house and garden, which she still tends, chopping wood every morning and preparing for colder times. She has always made time for conversations with me, and much of our relationship has grown through working alongside one another, doing chores, talking, helping and being helped. During the eight years my father lived in a care home, she would call from her visits so my brothers and I could speak with him, and sometimes simply see one another when he could no longer speak. We continue to share our lives through conversation, work, travel, and the things we do apart or together.

MANUSCRIPT WRITER

An intelligent and creative multidisciplinary man, with an extraordinary memory, a gift for storytelling, a remarkable ability to grasp complex subjects, and a talent for forming deep and lasting friendships. He has a highly analytical mind and an unusual capacity for seeing how things fit together, moving quickly from the larger structure to the details that make it work. He has played guitar since childhood and taught himself piano as an adult. Writing has been a constant thread through his life, particularly writing for theatre, where his storytelling ability and fascination with people and the worlds they inhabit can come together. Much of his work is created together with his wife, Anja, who is an actress. Several of his plays have been published, one of which was made into the film Hemmeligheden. A father of two and grandfather of four, he appears to take great pleasure in caring for the older generations and looking after the youngest members of the family. At times when I could not remember, he has been my memory, bringing back details of our shared past that I had lost. Unlike much of the family, who have travelled, moved and lived in different places, he and Anja has remained in one place, growing deep roots..

ARTIST & PHOTOGRAPHER

Focused, creative and purposeful, with a deep understanding of photography, a distinctive eye, and an ability to connect easily with people. School was not where his particular abilities found constructive expression, but when our father gave each of us a small camera on one of our first trips to Ethiopia, he found something he could become deeply absorbed in and exceptionally good at. We photographed wild hippos, vast lakes with hyenas on the other side, and the Emperor’s lions ridden by their keepers. For Nicolai, the camera opened up a world in which observation, curiosity and technical understanding could come together. He took that first encounter with photography and turned it into a lifelong love affair, continually deepening his practice through scientific and creative experimentation, learning how to push the medium further and developing his own way of seeing through it. His former wife, Trine, is also an accomplished photographer, and together they have three daughters. What began with a small camera on a family journey grew into an artistic practice that continues to evolve.

SOCIOLOGY STUDENT & MARATHON RUNNER

Thoughtful, socially engaged and determined, with a deep interest in people and society, a gift for deep thought and observation, a talent for friendship, and the discipline to pursue ambitious challenges. When I gave birth to him, labour began on the 25th, on a very warm day, and continued until the 28th, when the heat had become almost African. He was literally fighting his way into the world - a stargazer from the beginning, trying to enter through the traditional doorway. Even with the help of forceps, it could not be done, and he eventually entered the world by Caesarean section. It was not an easy entrance. As he grew, he revealed many sides to his temperament, but above all a gentleness so fine and a ferocity so formidable that I came to think of him as both lion and lamb. His father, Ulf, is a psychoanalyst and adventurer, and with him Oscar has shared a love of the outdoors, hiking, skiing and camping. Today he studies sociology, with a deepening interest in people and society, forms deep and lasting friendships, and has taken on the challenge of marathon running, training with a quiet determination to discover how far he can go.

BAKER & COOK

Wild-hearted, independent and deeply alive, with an enormous appetite for life and a love of travel and adventure. Coming into the world went smoothly, but as she grew it became clear that she approached life differently from other children. The connection between thought and movement was sometimes quirky, and her language began with a stutter that she has since overcome. Her thoughts move at racing speed, while translating them into language takes much longer - bringing to mind the fable of the hare and the tortoise. This tension was rarely understood or appreciated, except by a few remarkable educators to whom we are eternally grateful. She is an amazing friend, deeply devoted to continuing to learn and to finding her own way through life. Everything she does, she has trialled and errored her way through, developing an extraordinary resilience and an ability to keep moving forward and go after what she wants. Her love of travel and making things by hand is something she shares with Ulfson, whose own making takes the form of beautifully carved wooden spoons and boxes. Her making has found its way into the kitchen, where she continues to learn through her hands, making a life for herself through curiosity, practice and a willingness to try.

HEAD OF SALES & MARKETING

A steady and capable professional who studied Politics and Social Science at Roskilde University (RUC) and has spent twenty-five years with the same company, working his way up to become Head of Sales and Marketing. Like his father, he is highly skilled with his hands, and has worked alongside his stepfather repairing thatched roofs and restoring old houses. There is something practical and versatile in the way he approaches both his work and the world around him - from building and repairing things with his hands to navigating a long professional career in sales and marketing. He loves travelling, spent considerable time in South America, and continues to travel widely, with a curiosity about places and the wider world that has taken him far beyond Denmark. He has three children, two boys and a girl, now all adults. Although we did not grow up in the same household, we have celebrated plenty of anniversaries and Christmases together and remained in contact throughout our lives. Over the years, I have enjoyed getting to know him.

HOSPITALITY

A sophisticated hostess and highly capable facilitator, with a street tomboy’s spirit, a sharp tongue and the ability to move towards jobs wherever she was. She came into my life when my mother met her father, and for a while we lived together. She worked mainly in restaurants as a hostess, before moving into a world where her job was to make the impossible possible for extremely wealthy clients, taking her around the world to places such as Hong Kong and London. She had a very direct and practical way of moving through the world - a kind of street logic, moving towards people, forming deep friendships and finding work wherever she was, with a glint in her eyes, as if she knew what you were hiding. She had a strong connection to both the physical and the spiritual, and she introduced me to the senses in all their intensity - both pain and pleasure. We continued to meet regularly at our parents’ home. She died far too young, and I miss her a lot and think of her often.