Lars Kinsarvik (1846–1925) is regarded as the modernizer of Norwegian woodcarving both through his artistry and his work as a teacher. Kinsarvik was an adherent of the contemporary “Norwegianness” movement and the idea of recreating what was “authentically” Norwegian in language and culture after over 400 years of strong Danish influence

In the early twentieth century, Møre Folk High School in Ørsta in Sunnmøre was a hub in this movement. Kinsarvik settled in Sunnmøre in 1905 and was a leading figure at the school. He lived in Sunnmøre for the rest of his active career. During this time, he achieved his artistic breakthrough with painted furniture executed in blue and bluish green colours, inspired by the Norwegian Viking Age and Middle Ages, first in Dragestil (“Dragon Style”) and later in the synthesis of Dragestil and Art Nouveau.

The meandering ornamentation of his furniture alludes to the décor used in Norway’s medieval stave churches (the Urnes style), combined with quotations and figures from Norwegian folk tales and Old Norse sagas. Kinsarvik gradually received many large-scale decoration commissions, where he created entire interiors and large furniture groups for cafés, private homes, and churches. The living room furniture on display here was commissioned in 1910 by the poet and priest Anders Hovden from Ørsta.