Bonatzi and merry Elsie, Michael Peter Ancher, 1904

Bonatzi and elsie were two well-known people in skagen. The painters often used them as models. Josef bonatzi (1845-1913) was a bohemian shoemaker who came to skagen in 1885. He built a house "lyrehuset", of what he could find of materials. After his death the house was used for the midsummer bonfire. Merry elsie hellesen (1842-1920) was a berry picker and a maid. She picked berries for the ancher, the locher and the brøndum families. She lost her sanity when her fiancé drowned a few days before their wedding. Object Type: painting. Genre: portrait. Date: 1904. Dimensions: height: 55 cm (21.6 in); width: 66 cm (25.9 in). Medium: oil on canvas. Depicted People: Josef Bonatzi. Michael Ancher - Bonatzi og glade Elsie - 1904