Bodil Larsen Rohweder was an acclaimed Danish illustrator predominantly known for her intricate zoological and botanical drawings.

Born in Copenhagen, the daughter of a stockbroker, Rohweder’s early tuition was undertaken at the School for Drawing and Applied Art for Women. The first school of its kind, it offered female artists the opportunity to train, at a time when a male-dominated society still broadly frowned upon such endeavours. In 1902, she enrolled at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts.

Her early works in oil tend to focus on maternal activities within the home. Two mothers bring their children to a playdate, bourgeois women undertake handicrafts in opulent drawing rooms, and inquisitive sisters peer into a dresser. In all of these, no males are present.

Underpinning her talent for observational genre scenes was her attention to detail coupled with her finesse with a pencil. She was an extraordinary draughtswoman able to accurately render minute forms with unerring precision.

Her true calling soon became evident when she was commissioned to produce numerous illustrations for scientific journals, documents and books. In 1916, working on the ‘Textbook of Zoology’ by JEV Boas; in 1925, providing a set of exquisite diagrams for ‘The Elephant's Head, II’ by the same author; and in 1938, illustrating ‘The Housefly and Stingfly’ by Math. Thomsen.

While her career as an illustrator appears to have provided the mainstay of her income, she also continued to work in oils over the course of her life. She married Aage Carl August Strubberg in 1923, changing her name to Bodil Larsen Strubberg.

Timeline

1883

Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, to Johan Ernst Larsen, a stockbroker, and Doris Alfrede Rohweder.

1898

Enrolled at the Tegne-og Kunstindustriskolen for Kvinder (the School for Drawing and Applied Art for Women).

1900

Name changed from Larsen to Rohweder.

1902-1910

Studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.

1916

Provided illustrations for the ‘Textbook of Zoology’ by JEV Boas.

1923

Married Aage Carl August Strubberg in Copenhagen.
Provided illustrations for ‘Danish Forest Zoology’ by JEV Boas.

1925

Provided illustrations for ‘The Elephant's Head, II’ by JEV Boas and Simon Paulli.

1928

Provided illustrations for ‘Vort Landbrugs Skadedyr’ by Sofie Rostrup and Math. Thomsen.

1933

Provided illustrations for ‘Pests of Garden Plants’ by Math. Thomsen and P. Bovien.

1938

Provided illustrations for ‘The Housefly and Stingfly’ by Math. Thomsen.

1975

Died in Ghent, Belgium.