Jens R. Nilssen

Jens Richard Nilssen was a Norwegian illustrator and cartoonist born on 11 August 1880 in Valberg, Nordland, who went on to become one of the most enduring figures in Norwegian comics. He died on 28 February 1964.

His artistic training was thorough and cosmopolitan: he studied at Statens håndverks- og kunstindustriskole in Kristiania, followed by the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts, and then at Peder Severin Krøyer's painting school in Copenhagen. That grounding in fine art informed the warmth and craft he brought to illustration throughout his career.

Nilssen contributed cartoons and illustrations to several satirical and humor publications, including Hvepsen, Karikaturen, and Humoristen, while also working regularly for Nynorsk Vekeblad and the children's magazine Norsk Barneblad. He illustrated numerous children's books alongside this periodical work.

His most significant and lasting achievement came in 1938, when he partnered with writer Andreas Haavoll to create Smørbukk, a comic strip whose cheerful character became a beloved fixture in Norwegian children's culture. He was also the artist behind Tuss og Troll, Haukepatruljen, and Vangsgutane. Our catalog records his credited work across 566 issues spanning publications from Smørbukk to Vangsgutane, reflecting a career of remarkable breadth and longevity in the Norwegian press.