Together with
Johannes Larsen,
Poul S. Christiansen and
Peter Hansen, Syberg was one of the first Funen artists to study under Zahrtmann who had broken away from the traditions of the
Danish Academy to venture into
Naturalism and
Realism. Initially he was influenced by Zahrtmann's colourist approach which can be seen in
Dødsfald (1892) depicting his mother's death in Fåborg's poorhouse 14 years earlier. After marrying Hansen's sister, the painter
Anna Syberg, his works became brighter as evidenced by his landscapes and the 18 large drawings he completed in 1895 to 1898 to illustrate
Hans Christian Andersen's
The Story of a Mother, now considered to be among Denmark's finest drawings. Thereafter, his oils include
Dødens komme (1906) and
Døden ved vuggen (1907) and landscapes depicting scenes from Funen, first around
Dyreborg and
Svanninge such as
Forår (1893) and
Aftenleg i Svanninge Bakker (1900) and later the area west of
Kerteminde where his garden and children were the main subjects. Quite early in his career, Syberg began to paint watercolours but it was during his three-year stay in Pisa with his family that he completed a whole series of watercolours adopting a style that was new to Danish art. But shortly after he returned to Denmark, on the occasion of his daughter Besse's marriage to
Harald Giersing, Syberg came into contact with the younger generation of Danish artists, resulting in an increasingly
Modernist approach and a return to oils as in
Overkærby Bakke. Vinter (1917). His son
Ernst Syberg also became an artist. ==Selected works==