Girl with Sunflowers
Michael Ancher painted two versions of this painting. The first was painted in 1889 and this one was made four years later. The first version was often on loan to various exhibitions, which is why Ancher made a second version. The first version was sold to the National Gallery of Denmark (SMK) in 1928.
The model is Maren Brems, who was a maid for the Ancher family. She stands in the doorway between the South and North rooms in Anchers Hus; the light streams in from the North room, while the South room in the background is cloaked in darkness. In this version, Maren Brems is dressed in one of Anna Ancher’s dresses, and she stands with a copper vase containing a large bouquet of sunflowers. There were sunflowers growing in the old garden at Brøndum’s Hotel (Skagens Museum today), but there were also sunflowers in the garden at Anchers Hus.
