Renowned Odd Skullerud has passed away

It is with sadness that we at Galleri EKG received the message that painter Odd Skullerud has passed away. He was born in 1943 in Kragerø, but moved with his family across the fjord to Østfold when he was just two years old.

On Onsøy, he has built up a whole yard of old houses and storehouses, and where he has lived with Anne Langsholt Apaydinli. In this scenic area, he has drawn inspiration for his landscape paintings.

This year it is 18 years since Elverum art gallery, now Galleri EKG, started the collaboration with Odd Skullerud. In February 2006, the gallery showed Skullerud's paintings for the first time.

Gallerist Pirjo Birgitta Mursu looks back on a fun start to the collaboration. Magnar Rismyhr, a painter who has been associated with the gallery for many years, had come across a book on Nordic graphics. In it, it was written about Odd Skullerud's graphics, and it was with great, and repeated, enthusiasm that Rismyhr declared that Skullerud was in the top echelon of Nordic graphic artists, and that Mursu had to get him to exhibit in the gallery.

Mursu followed the advice and contacted Skullerud by phone. He was not dismissive, but said he would have a couple of days before he could respond. It emerged later that Skullerud had called his brother, who lives in Elverum, to find out what kind of gallery this was. The gallery was quite new, so the brother ended up taking a little trip in to check out the gallery, and when Mursu got a call back from Skullerud, he said that he would like to exhibit in the gallery. Mursu had foreseen that persuasion and negotiations would be needed and was surprised at the short negotiation time. Later Skullerud told with a glimpse of the island about his brother's "espionage" trip to the gallery.

Throughout all these years, Skullerud has built up an audience in the region. He has been both a festival exhibitor at the Norwegian Forest Museum during the Festivals in Elverum, had several solo exhibitions and held a Falgstad exhibition during the Kirsten Flagstad festival in Galleri EKG in Hamar. He was a natural in two of the gallery's major themed projects; "Forest in the art - art in the forest" in collaboration with the Norwegian Forest Museum in Elverum and "Eget druk" handmade graphics, the gallery's contribution to the 100th anniversary of Norwegian graphic artists.

Skullerud was educated at the Statens Håndverks- og Kunstindustriskole 1964-67 and the Statens Artakademi 1967-7i. He worked with painting and hand-made graphics, and has had several solo exhibitions and group exhibitions all over the country.

Our thoughts go out to him wife Anne and other family we have come to know over the years.

Sign the grief.

Gallerist Pirjo Birgitta Mursu and May-Britt Bjølo Henriksen on behalf of all employees at Galleri EKG