Georgia Elise (Leis) Schjelderup was a Norwegian painter born 1856 in Kristiansand. She came from the bourgeoisie in Bergen. The family was part of an environment that cultivated literature, art and music. Her father was a good singer, and her mother a skilled pianist. Schjelderup and her five siblings were encouraged to cultivate these abilities of their parents. In Bergen the siblings went under the nickname "de fem genibørn," (The five genius children), and while Leis and her brother Georg studied painting, their two other sisters Anna Maria and Andrea chose music education. Their brother Gerhard went on to become one of the greatest opera composer in Norway.
    Schjelderup attended Bergen technical evening school, and at one time was a pupil of landscape artist Anders Askevold. She was only 18 years old when in 1874 she went to Paris. She would remain there for the 12 years and lay the foundation for all her work as an artist. In 1878 she participated at the World Exhibition in Paris, and in 1879 she debuted at the annual Salon of Fine Arts in Paris, making her one of the first women from Norway to have a work accepted to the Salon. She continued to exhibit at the Salon throughout the 1880s. During these years in Paris she also participated at shows in Denmark, Germany and England.
    She received additional education at the Académie Julian in Paris from 1881−1882. She studied under the artist Charles Chaplin and was his student for more than four years. In 1886 she moved to Copenhagen. A scholarship enabled her to complete her studies in Italy in 1894.

    Already during her studies in Paris, Schjelderup made a name for herself as a portrait painter. She portrayed, among others, Edvard Grieg, Amalie Skram, art historian Johan Bøgh, and the Danish count Hans Schack. The portrait of Grieg is today owned by Bergen Billedgalleri. In 1885 a portrait of Olav Lofthus was shown both at the Autumn Exhibition and the World Exhibition in Paris. The latter exhibition won her an honorary award from the jury.
    Towards the end of 1883 the composer Edvard Grieg often appeared in her letters to her parents. At the time Grieg and his wife had separated. It was later revealed that Leis had a relationship with Grieg, and that he considered leaving his wife Nina in favor of her. However, Grieg changed his mind at the urging of composer Frants Beyer while on his way to Paris and reconciled with his wife.
    A self-portrait of Leis Schjelderup can be found in the Barony of Rosendal. The Barony held a large exhibition of the works of Leis Schjelderup in 2004. The artist is also mentioned in Line Ruud's thesis from the University of Oslo in 2003 with the title, "Académie Julian: A study of three Norwegian women's stays in the 1880s. Leis Schjelderup - Sigrid Bølling - Valborg Olsen Dubois."
     The artist is represented in these public institutions:

• National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design in Oslo

• Bergen Art Museum

• Bergen Picture Gallery in Oslo

• The City Museum at the University Library in Bergen

• Westland Art Industry Museum

• Bergen National Hospital

• The Oslo Theater History Museum

• Copenhagen Frederiksborg Castle Hillerød