Her Majesty Queen Sonja was back in the news recently, this time making her debut as a visual artist. The queen attended the official opening of the exhibition “Under Pressure: Master prints from Atelje Larsen," where eight of her own works are on display. The exhibition features 1,000 works by 80 artists, all produced at Atelje Larsen, one of the world's leading printmaking studios.The purpose of the project is to raise starting capital for The Foundation for Her Majesty Queen Sonja's Art Award, which she established earlier this year to promote paper-based arts. You can read more about the show and the queen's foundation in a press release on the palace's website. And you can view the queen's work in this slideshow on the Aftenposten website. Aftenposten's readers gave Her Majesty mixed reviews, but I agree with those who applaud the queen for being a "modig kvinne"—a brave woman. With the whole country scrutinizing her talent, I think "Under Pressure" is the perfect name for this project. After all, creative risk-taking is never easy, even for a queen.
Amy Boxrud is editor of Viking magazine. She lives with her family in Northfield, Minn., where she’s a member of Nordmarka 1-585.
Photo: Rolf M. Aagaard, The Royal Court