Sigrid af Forselles

Sigrid af Forselles (1860—1935) was a Finnish sculptor, notable for being one of the first professional female sculptors of the country.

Early life and education Sigrid af Forselles was born to an upper-class family of minor nobility; her father was the engineer, inventor, retired Colonel, and Director-General of Metsähallitus, Alexander af Forselles, and her mother Emilie Sofie Jacquette Waenerberg. Her younger brother was Arthur af Forselles, who later became a physician and politician. Her main interest already then was sculpture, but it was not formally taught in Finland at the time, so she studied drawing instead. After graduation, she moved into sculpture, training at first privately under the Finnish sculptor , and later, from 1882 to 1886, in Paris with Auguste Rodin, Alfred Boucher, and others. four of which are housed in the Kallio Church of Helsinki, and the fifth at Ateneum, one of the three museums of the Finnish National Gallery. It took 16 years to create, and is considered her magnum opus. Many of her other works also have a religious or spiritual theme.