Funen Funen Funen (, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 466,284 (2013). Funen's main city is Odense, which is connected to the sea by a seldom-used canal. The city's shipyard, Odense Steel Shipyard, has been relocated outside Odense proper. Funen belongs administratively to the Region of Southern Denmark. From 1970 to 2006 the island formed the biggest part of Funen County, which also included the islands of Langeland,
Funen Painters artists including Olaf Rude, Harald Leth and Sven Havsteen-Mikkelsen who came to Møllebakken for inspiration. Another artist associated with the group was Poul S. Christiansen who came from the north of Funen and became a close friend of Zahrtmann after he joined his school in 1885. It was there that he met Johannes Larsen. As a result of their paintings of everyday country life, the Funen Painters were sometimes disparagingly called "bondemalerne" or the peasant painters. In 1907, there was a heated debate in the Danish press between Gudmund Hentze and Harald Slott-Møller and his wife, who stood up for