Who is Trude Semb? (Norwegian painter born 1969) She is the kind of person whose presence, when walking into a room, makes everyone curious. That is how I met her and became friends. I just had to find out who this intriguing person was. Trudie's father died when she was nine years old and she found her creative outlet for the strong emotions in drawing, which then eventually led to painting. Her medium is oil on canvas. She took on expressionism early and has stayed true to this form not following trends. It was not very cool to paint expressionistic when she started but then again she is not into measuring her work towards others either. After finishing courses at an Oslo art school she tried her luck at Oslo's Art Academy but was rejected. Her mother had found an article about artist Rados Dedic who had a daily visit at a bakery. Trudie, who thought he looked really interesting, found him at the bakery and asked if he took on students. He was a professor at the Art Academy. Dedic, who hailed from war torn Montenegro, was not very forthcoming but after visiting Trudie's studio it turned out they had the same nerve in their respective works. They found common grounds in their work, ideas, thoughts, even with such completely different backgrounds. Dedic brought Trudie to the board at the Art Academy and said out loud with his strong accent ; This is TRODE and now she is my student! Through her time with Dedic she found the strength and confidence to stand by her work and be a full time artist. Dedic, having lived through hell in Montenegro, was suffering from severe depressions and committed suicide in 1999. Trudie continued working in the "eagles nest" atelier she shared with Dedic for many years. She moved to New York in 1998 / 1999 for a short period to pursue further experience but eventually decided to go back to Norway with her 4 year old daughter to raise her with family and friends around. In her paintings the faces are prominent. Sh