When Elling Reitan reveals his paintings, drawings, cubes and graphics at Britannia Hotel in 2023, it will be his largest ever solo exhibition.

Reitan is best known as a painter who celebrates colour. At Britannia, the artist will also document his solid draftsmanship, with a salute in charcoal to two of his role models, Salvador Dali and Francis Bacon. 

Denmark's well-known art journalist and author, Ole Lindboe, wrote in his book about Elling Reitan: "The enigmatic angel" (2005). Reitan's colourism also draws parallels to some of the masters of art history:

Elling Reitan is a student of Odd Nerdrum and, like his teacher, he received the rare recognition of being reviewed in the US's largest art magazine, Art News. The Trondheim painter was also awarded the title "Nobel Artist of the Year" in 2000 and has had major exhibitions in the USA, England, India, Japan, France and China.

In addition to paintings and charcoal drawings, Elling Reitan's Britannia exhibition contains metal prints placed in plexi-glass boxes, and Munch adaptations printed by Alexander Heinrici in the USA, who has also printed for world-famous artists such as Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst.

Elling Reitan is represented in a number of public and private collections in Norway, the USA, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and India, such as the National Museum, HM Queen Sonja's collection, The Sackler Family collection (USA) and the Victoria and David Beckham collection (England).

73-year-old Elling Reitan works in his studio almost every day, working on both paintings and watercolours. The artist is also in full vigour in the graphics workshop. His romantic and poetic artistic expression is recognisable, but at the same time added a melancholic sound that adds something new to the works. And which, not least, suits his artistic expression.

Stein Slettebak Wangen, art curator at Britannia Hotel