Scandinavian Folklore - Blog Posts

I started this painting of the Yule Cat a while ago and never finished it. If you don't know about the Yule Cat, I highly recommend you Google it. It's a giant cat that eats children who don't do their chores and he's one of my favorite Christmas adjacent folk characters!

Nøkken Among the Lilies

Thought I'd post a pic of my summer acrylic painting.

The Nøkken (also known as Näcken, Nøkk, Nixie, or Nix) is a water spirit from Scandinavian Folklore. He is known to reside in still bodies of water, hiding in the lily pads and fern. Nøkken was said to play the violin, fiddle, or harp so beautifully it lured people to the bodies of water where they drowned.

In May I worked on touching up my acrylic paintings. Here's my first attempt at the Nøkken sitting in a still body of water playing his fiddle.

This is one of my favorite paintings I've done.

These are Huldra or Hulderfolk from Scandinavian folklore. Hulderfolk are seductive forest spirits and their name translates loosely to "hidden" or "secret". They're said to look like normal women with the only difference being the hole in their back that resembles a hollowed tree and the long cow-like tail which they hide under their skirts. If you encounter a Huldra and treat her with respect, she will be very helpful (sharing the best fishing spots or tending to your charcoal kiln), but mistreat her and the punishment will be severe (being beaten to death with her tail or taken into the mountains never to be seen again).

Just thought I'd share the first Scandinavian creature I ever painted.

Nisse are little gnomish creatures that live in your house. They can be very mischievous if not treated with the respect they deserve (i.e. leaving a hot bowl of porridge out for them) or if you're generally neglectful to your house and livestock.

Progress photos of my Nøkken painting back in May.

And here's the finished product. (Although I might always add touch ups because my work is never finished).