Urnes Style Wood Burned & Painted Box

Design

This one of a kind product was created by Sigurboði Grétarsson exclusively for Northern Fire.

The box is painted in the Urnes style, which lends its name to the Viking Age art styles from Urnes Stave Church in Norway. This striking wooden building offers an elaborate entrance (literally and figuratively) into the final style of Viking art, which of course takes its name from this location. With much more open and negative space in the design, these could easily be drawn onto the highly-demanded runestones of the time (and one artist’s signature has been found on over 60 of them!). Many of the most well-known runestones in Sweden display these highly identifiable beasts covered in runes, with their gracefully winding bodies, short lapets, and distinctive almond shaped eyes.

Material & Make

The use of fire to manipulate natural materials is one of the most ancient forms of artistry. Pyrography has been discovered on artefacts globally such as bone, wood, leather, and even stone.

Each piece is uniquely one of a kind, having been hand worked by the artisan to compliment the dimension of the design and respect the natural grain of the wood.

The design is carved into the wooden box using a pyrography pen and finished with acrylic paint.

About The Artist

Sigurboði Grétarsson is an Icelandic musician, tattooist, and artisan. Having collaborated with other prominent artists (such as Vévaki, Danheim, Heldom, Urspring, Munknörr, and Rúnfell), his work extends to the skin while he tattoos alongside his fiance Hrafnhildur (known as the tattoo artist Habba Nero). However, his specialty with handcraft applies to horns, which he has been carving for almost a decade in the Viking Age art styles familiar to so many.

For more on Sigurboði, feel free to check out our blog on his dynamic artistry.  You can see more of his artwork on Northern Fire here.

Size & Dimensions

27 x 14.5 x 8cm (11 x 6 x 3 inches)