Born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Balling was a student of Norwegian artist Ferdinand Jonas Gjøs (1790–1852) and trained under Danish decorative painter Jacob Emilius Wunderlich (1809–1892). He was a student at art academies both at the
Academy of Arts, Berlin (1843–1845) and the
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen (1846–1848) and in 1854 studied with
Thomas Couture in Paris. He made his debut at the
Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition in 1852. Balling volunteered in the
First Schleswig-Holstein War and became a Danish officer in 1848. He emigrated to the United States in 1856, where he lived until 1874. He commanded the
145th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the
American Civil War. Balling depicted several
Union Army generals, including a portrait of
Ulysses S. Grant and another painting of Grant and his generals, and portraits of
Philip Sheridan,
John Sedgwick, and
James S. Wadsworth. In addition, he created portraits of prominent American statesmen, including presidents
Chester Arthur and
James Garfield, as well as the abolitionist
John Brown. In 1874, Balling returned to Norway to operate a painter workshop in
Horten, at the time the site of
Karljohansvern, the main base for the
Royal Norwegian Navy. Here he painted portraits of several Norwegian naval officers. In addition, he completed portraits of members of the Royal
Bernadotte family including Kings
Charles XIV John of Sweden,
Oscar I of Sweden,
Charles XV of Sweden and
Oscar II of Sweden. Between 1881 and 1890, Balling lived and worked in Mexico City. After returning to Norway in 1890, he became Mexican consul in Kristiania. His last visit to New York City was in 1895–96. He died on 1 May 1906 in Kristiania. Balling is also represented in the
National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.,
West Point Military Academy in New York and the
United States Naval Academy in
Annapolis, Maryland, the
Royal Norwegian Navy Museum in Horten and the
National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design in Oslo. == Awards ==