Thorolf Holmboe (1866–1935) became inspired by French Art Nouveau and Japanese art while studying in Paris. By combining these stylistic impulses with traditional Norwegian idioms, he developed a distinctive design within the Norwegian variant of Art Nouveau.

Holmboe worked actively both as a painter and designer, and he is regarded as one of the pioneers within Norwegian art in the effort to create a non-hierarchical equality among the arts. He was for example one of the first practitioners to elevate bookbinding to an art form in Norway.

His bookbinding design and illustrations for Norske Digte [Norwegian Poems] in 1893 is one of the earliest examples of Art Nouveau in Norwegian art history. The book cover showcases Holmboe’s penchant for combining Japanese aesthetics and the Art Nouveau style. The cover’s most eye-catching element is the frame of stylized violets, a flower whose gracefulness and durability made it a perennial favourite in contemporary Norwegian gardens. The overlapping violets are seen here from above in a birds-eye view, with asymmetry creating a sense of variation.