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Norway

Queen Sonja celebrates the Friends of the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design’s centenary

On Thursday, Queen Sonja attended a formal dinner to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Friends of the Museum of Decorative Arts and Designs. The event was held at the Oslo Military Society.

The Friends of the Museum of Decorative Arts and Designs is Norway’s oldest association of its kind and was established in 1919. With around 300 members, the main goal of the association is to increase the museum’s collection of both older and newer handcrafted art pieces. All members are enthusiastic art lovers who would like to create interest for the beautiful pieces exhibited and to provide a wide range of information about the culture.

The museum itself closed in October 2016 to prepare for its relocation to the new National Museum which is due to open in 2020. Its collection holds over 50000 pieces of costumes, textiles, glassware and furniture from centuries past. Some highlights include 12th century Baldishol tapestry, the Royal Costume Collection, beautiful handcrafted spoons, vases and paintings. For those who love fashion, the museum exhibits clothing from the 1700s and you can even find a tulle dress that has neon lighting on it. There are hand-painted bowls, plates and other household goods showcasing Norway’s culture and the diversity of the different regions.

Some of the precious pieces exhibited can be viewed online on the museum’s website while anticipating a new exciting exhibition for next year.

As the Queen marks this milestone together with leaders and members of the association, she shows her love for culture and art.

She has always been a photographer capturing the beauty of the Norwegian landscape, and in 2011 she created the Queen Sonja Print Award, promoting the development of graphic art.

In 2017 the Queen Sonja Art Stable opened, where people can enjoy art and history in the surroundings of what once was the Royal Stables.

Now with the new National Museum opening its gates in 2020, the countries of Scandinavia will receive their first one of a kind building, which is going to be the largest cultural centre for the Nordic region. To show how precious art and culture is for the country, this new museum is going to have a spacious and open foyer with information desk and a permanent exhibition that will show twice as many works from the museum’s collection of arts and designs.