August Klagstad (1866-1949)

Hiro Fine Art is interested in purchasing artwork by August Klagstad.

Born in 1866 in Norway, August Klagstad moved to America with his family at an early age. They arrived in Wisconsin, but soon his father heard of work at a lumber company in Manistique and settled the family there. When they arrived, the town consisted of a few unpainted houses and, a mill, and a general store. Upon seeing this, disappointment took hold of his mother who sat on the ground to weep.

Her sorrow did not last long and she became not only a teacher to her children as they learned to read and write, but educated them in the Lutheran religion which influenced August’s career. As the town grew, a church and school was eventually established. August’s teacher noticed his intelligence and with her encouragement, he decided to continue his education rather than turn to lumbering.

At the Northern Indiana Normal School (now Valparaiso University), his intentions were to become a bookkeeper, but professors noticed his artistic talent. He studied art, gained employment at a studio in Chicago, and took extra classes on Saturdays at the Art Institute in Chicago and the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. Though he traveled in his life, working at studios in New York and Boston, he visited Manistique where he created his first altar painting.
He moved briefly to Wisconsin, where he married and had children, before he settled in Minneapolis. His career was devoted to creating religious paintings on altars, pews and other furnishings. His works are replicas of compositions by the masters with August’s own colors and details. With the help of his two son’s who joined his studio, he was able to create over 1000 altar paintings in his life. Many of his works live in churches in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, though others were shipped to churches throughout the United States, as well as Canada, Norway, Australia and Africa.