Lensgrevinde Thyra Valborg Krag-Juel-Vind Frijs, f. Haffner 1863

This is a bust of Lensgrevinde Thyra Valborg Krag-Juel-Vind Frijs, made in Denmark by H.W. Bissen. The sculpture is an idealized representation of the countess, likely intended for display in a private family collection. The work emulates the Neoclassical style then popular across Europe, but it also highlights the specific social dynamics of 19th-century Danish aristocracy. Bissen, trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, was a celebrated sculptor of his day, and his commissions reflect the tastes and values of his wealthy patrons. The bust, in its cool and distant Classicism, reinforces the social distance between the aristocracy and the rest of the population. To fully understand this work, we might turn to genealogical records, estate inventories, and other historical documents that shed light on the Krag-Juel-Vind Frijs family and their place in Danish society. After all, art, even portraiture, always exists in a social and institutional context.