Thyra Boldsen

Thyra Valborg Boldsen (1884–1968) was a Danish sculptor who created works in a naturalistic style using many different types of stone. She was particularly successful in the United States after moving to California in 1931. Four of her works were installed in Los Angeles' Exposition Park in 1936. Her work was part of the sculpture event in the art competition at the 1932 Summer Olympics.

Biography Born on 2 January 1884 in Farum, Thyra Valborg Boldsen was the daughter of the farmer Frederik Svane Grundtzmann (1856–1922) and Mathea Christine Nielsen (1855–1891). In 1906, she married the engineer Kai Svane Gnudtzmann but the marriage was dissolved in 1915.

Boldsen began to train as a sculptor under Gunnar Jensen. After preparatory studies at the Arts and Crafts School for Women, she was admitted to the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 1903. As a result of the additional year she spent at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris (1905–06), she graduated from the academy in 1912. After her death in 1968, the statues were taken to Denmark.

Thyra Boldsen died in Monrovia, California, on 22 September 1968.