Copenhagen University Library. Photo: I DO ART

Sunrise – JMVH

Weaving
200×100 cm
(2025)

The weaving Sunrise – JMVH pays tribute to the astronomer Julie Marie Vinter Hansen (1890–1960), the first woman to hold a permanent academic position at the University of Copenhagen. As a student, she worked as a “computer” (a human calculator) at the university’s observatory and later became known for her precise calculations of comet trajectories.

The weaving is based on a radiating Sunrise pattern from the 19th century, whose rhythm has been adapted using data from Vinter Hansen’s astronomical computations. It thus connects Hansen’s scientific practice to current discussions about visibility, knowledge, and hierarchies.