Elin Bjorsvik - Biography



Elin was born in Norway in 1971 on an island outside Bergen (Norway's second largest city). Growing up in the countryside, she spent her childhood days playing in the forest and climbing up the mountains nearby her family home. Long walks in the forest, cross country running, family camping and a large selection of outside activities and sports were all part of Elin's childhood.

This fondness of the forest and the mystical enchantment of the mountains is something that is still inspiring Elin's work. In her earlier days she would often make drawings and paintings which included trees and trolls, often with the famous mountains of the Norwegian fjords in the background. As an adult, her earlier work and inspiration has been translated into an abstract form of expression.

Elin's current paintings are more geometrical and textured, however, it is still possible to sense her Nordic background by the use of colours and shapes.

In 1990, after finishing high school, Elin did a foundation course in arts and crafts in Bergen. She spent a year learning everything from painting to knitting and ceramics and she developed a great interest for subjects in painting and printmaking. At this stage, Elin became certain that her creative side was something she wanted to pursue as a career and life time vocation.

After finishing her foundation course, she moved into further education in graphic designs and spent a year focusing on drawing, illustration and graphic design.

In 1994, Elin moved to Scotland to attend art college in Aberdeen, where she spent the next four years focusing on the fine arts. She became interested in learning more about printmaking techniques and spent most of her time in the workshop producing everything from etchings to lithographs , monoprints and screenprinting. Her favourite printmaking process was collagraph printing , and in her final year she created a whole selection of collagraph & etchings for her degree show.

After her degree show, Elin moved to London and held her first solo exhibition at the Norwegian Seamen's Church in Rotherhithe. This was an exhibition of original prints called "Nordic Themes". This was an exhibition of original prints called "Nordic Themes", mostly featuring work created in the final year of her degree course in addition to new artworks printed over the summer months in Aberdeen.

After signing up to a new printmaking workshop in London, Elin decided to stay in the capital and held a number of exhibitions across the city. In 2000, Elin's focus changed from printmaking to painting and she started creating a collection of acrylic paintings on paper. She developed her painting style further to include elements of printing, without using traditional printmaking techniques.

In 2003, Elin moved to Los Angeles for a short period where she continued developing her painting. She spent time in Orange County and became inspired by the Atlantic Ocean and the strong, vibrant colours of the art work exhibited along the Californian coast.

After her return from the USA, Elin became a member of Wimbledon Art Studio where she worked and exhibited for the next four years. She started experimenting with acrylics on canvas and her work became more about three-dimensional forms.

Elin then had a solo exhibition in Edinburgh, another large solo exhibition in London's West End, and her paintings were featured in a short film. She has now moved into a new art studio near Chelsea and her next solo exhibition will be in March 2011 @ Gallery 27, Cork Street, London.


Additional Information:
Elin's Painting Gallery
Elin's Artist Statement
Elin's Artist CV



A Selection of Elin's current paintings: