Background
Wilse was born in Flekkefjord, but grew up in Kragerø and decided early to become a sailor.
Wilse was born in Flekkefjord, but grew up in Kragerø and decided early to become a sailor.
After having graduated with a technical degree from the technical school in Horten in 1882, he emigrated to the United States in 1884.
He did not find work in the beginning, but eventually settled in Seattle working for the United States Geological Survey. He is reported to have acquired his first camera in 1886. Wilse left behind about 200,000 images.
Most of his negatives are now preserved at museums, including Norsk Folkemuseum, where more than 100,000 sceneries and ethnological images are held, Oslo Bymuseum for images related to the history of Oslo, the National Library of Norway for portrait photography, and the Norwegian Maritime Museum for maritime photographs.
A number of negatives also reside in the Chusseau-Flaviens collection at George Eastman House. These images are being scanned digitally, and many are available online.
In 2014 Wilse"s photos were included in "Norges dokumentarv" - the most important documentary heritage of Norway. Dagens Næringsliv describes Wilse as Norway"s most prominent photographer.
He left behind a cultural heritage, the newspaper writes.