Art Bulletin of

NationalmuseumStockholm

Volume OM

Carl Larsson: Friends & Enemies

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Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum, Stockholm,is published with generous support from theFriends of the Nationalmuseum.

The Nationalmuseum collaborates withSvenska Dagbladet, Fältman & Malménand Grand Hôtel Stockholm.

Items in the Acquisitions section are listedalphabetically by artists’ names, except in the caseof applied arts items, which are listed in order oftheir inventory numbers. Measurements are incentimetres – Height H, Breadth B, Depth D,Length L, Width W, and Diameter Diam.– except for those of drawings and prints, whichare given in millimetres.

Cover IllustrationAlexander Roslin (NTNUÓNTVP), The Artist and hisWife Marie Suzanne Giroust Portraying HenrikWilhelm Peill, NTST. Oil on canvas, NPN ñ VUKR cm.Donated by the Friends of the Nationalmuseum,Sophia Giesecke Fund, Axel Hirsch Fundand Mr Stefan Persson and Mrs Denise Persson.Nationalmuseum, åã TNQNK

PublisherMagdalena Gram

EditorJanna Herder

Editorial CommitteeMikael Ahlund, Magdalena Gram, Janna Herder,Helena Kåberg and Magnus Olausson.

PhotographsNatinalmuseum Photographic Studio/LinnAhlgren, Erik Cornelius, Anna Danielsson,Cecilia Heisser, Bodil Karlsson, Per-Åke Persson,Sofia Persson and Hans Thorwid.

Picture EditorRikard Nordström

Photo Credits© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Braunschweig(p. NQ)© The Gothenburg Museum of Art/HosseinSehatlou (p. NU)© Malmö Art Museum/Andreas Rasmusson(p. OO)© Wildenstein & Co., Inc., New York (p. OV)© RMN Grand Palais/Musée du Louvre,Paris/Hervé Lewandowski (p. PMF© The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles(Fig. QI p. PN)© RMN Grand Palais/Musée du Louvre,Paris/René-Gabriel Ojéda (Fig. RI p. PN)© Guilhem Scherf (p. PO)© Bridgeman/Institute of Arts, Detroit (p. PP)© Musée des Arts décoratifs, Paris/Jean Tholance(p. PQ)© RMN Grand Palais/Musée du Louvre, Paris(p. PR)© Accademia Nazionale di San Luca,Rome/Mauro Coen (Figs, SI NM and NO,pp. NNQÓNNS)© Mikael Traung (Fig. T, p. NNQ)© Stockholm City Museum (p. NOP)http://www.stockholmskallan.se/Soksida/Post/?nid=319© Stockholm City Museum/Lennart afPetersens (p. NOQ)© http://www.genealogi.se/component/mtree/soedermanland/eskilstuna/a_zetherstroem_/22850?Itemid=604 (p. NOR)© http://www.genealogi.se/component/mtree/bohuslaen/marstrand/robert-dahlloefs-atelier/22851?Itemid=604 (p. NOT)

Every effort has been made by the publisher tocredit organizations and individuals with regardto the supply of photographs. Please notify thepublisher regarding corrections.

Graphic DesignBIGG

LayoutAgneta Bervokk

Translation and Language EditingGabriella Berggren and Martin Naylor.

PublicationsIngrid Lindell (Publications Manager),Janna Herder (Editor).

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum is publishedannually and contains articles on the historyand theory of art relating to the collections ofthe Nationalmuseum.

NationalmuseumBox NSNTSëÉÓNMP OQ Stockholm, Swedenwww.nationalmuseum.se© Nationalmuseum and the authors

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få É~êäó cÉÄêì~êó OMNP , the Na-tionalmuseum closed its main building onBlasieholmen in Stockholm for several yearsof refurbishment. In June, the first of a num-ber of exhibitions in the Museum’s tempo-rary premises opened. The exhibition, CarlLarsson: Friends & Enemies, was shown inthree large galleries at the Royal Academy ofFine Arts on Fredsgatan in Stockholm.

The subject of the exhibition was cho-sen partly in view of the summer visitorsand the vast number of Swedish and for-eign tourists who usually come to the Na-tionalmuseum during the holidays. CarlLarsson is one of the most popular artists inthe collection, and Swedish and Nordic artfrom around the turn of the NVth century isgenerally loved by the summer audience.The theme – a presentation of Carl Larssonas a proponent of fin de siècle art and tradi-tions – seemed to be perfect for Stockholmin the summer of OMNP. The exhibition fea-tured Carl Larsson’s own works togetherwith several works by famous Swedish artistsfrom the period, including Anders Zorn,Hanna Pauli and Karl Nordström.

The focus was on Carl Larsson as a lead-ing figure on a highly dynamic arts scene.In Swedish cultural history, the late NUMMsare often described as a golden era, and theNUVMs appear to have been a pivotal decadewhen several prominent artists and writerswere at the zenith of their careers. Themost internationally famous of these was, ofcourse, August Strindberg, who was a closefriend of Carl Larsson for many years, but

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Carl Larsson: Friends & Enemies

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Fig. N Carl Larsson (NURPÓNVNV), August Strindberg, NUVV. Charcoal and oil on canvas,RS ñ PV cm. Nationalmuseum, åãÄ PVUK

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eventually became one of his worst ene-mies. In NVMU, Strindberg viciously attackedCarl Larsson and his wife in A New BlueBook, under the heading “Fabricated Char-acters”. Carl Larsson was deeply offended.A small section of the exhibition was devot-ed to the relationship between Carl Larssonand August Strindberg. It featured CarlLarsson’s portrait of Strindberg (Fig. N),along with one of Strindberg’s paintings.

The exhibition was largely arranged ac-cording to themes, based on Carl Larsson’spersonal relationships and his influenceon the arts scene around NVMM. But it alsopresented Carl Larsson’s life and oeuvreand covered his life and artistic develop-ment from his impoverished childhood inStockholm, his studies at the Royal Acade-my of Fine Arts and his time in Grez-sur-Loing, to the portrait painting and presti-gious public commissions in later years.Visitors thus had an opportunity to see anumber of Carl Larsson’s most famousworks, including many pictures of hishome and family at Sundborn in Dalarna.These are the images that made him so im-mensely popular (Fig. OFK

In NUUP, Carl Larsson married theSwedish painter Karin Bergöö. They hadmet in France, and Karin eventually had acrucial impact on Carl Larsson’s artisticcareer. Karin Bergöö studied art in Stock-holm and Paris, but stopped painting af-ter marrying Carl, who had voiced nega-tive opinions regarding women artists ingeneral in several contexts. Karin foundother outlets for her creativity, however.She played an important part in designingthe unique interiors of the family home,which grew into their joint artistic project.It comprised not only the interior designbut an approach to family life and variouslifestyle choices. One particular theme inthe exhibition concerned Carl’s manyportraits of Karin (Fig. P).

Despite his success, Carl Larsson occa-sionally encountered obstacles, for instancein connection with the commissions he re-ceived for public embellishments, such asthe one for the Nationalmuseum staircase.

Fig. O Carl Larsson (NURPÓNVNV), A Day of Celebration, c. NVUV. Watercolour, PO ñ QP cm.Nationalmuseum, åãÄ OUMK

Fig. P Carl Larsson (NURPÓNVNV), Azalea, NVMS. Thielska Galleriet, Stockholm, inv.no. ORNK

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A conservative establishment headed byKing Oscar II were opposed to his art, whilesome of his politically radical artist friendsfound him too right-wing. The exhibitionincluded several sketches for Carl Larsson’scommission for the Nationalmuseum. Os-car II was represented by a portrait paintedby Oscar Björck.

Carl Larsson’s success was based partlyon the support of a small group of patronswho bought his art at exhibitions and com-missioned new works. Portraits of the moreimportant of these patrons featured in theexhibition. At the time of Larsson’s break-through, the merchant and art collectorPontus Fürstenberg and his wife Göthildawere undoubtedly his most important pa-trons. Later, they were joined by the bankerErnest Thiel and Prince Eugen.

The exhibition comprised some NOMworks, almost NMM of which were by CarlLarsson. Other artists who were representedincluded Julia Beck, Hugo Birger, OscarBjörck, Eva Bonnier, Per Hasselberg, ErnstJosephson, Karl Nordström, Hanna Pauli,Georg Pauli and Anders Zorn. The Na-tionalmuseum’s own collection of Swedishfin de siècle art and works by Carl Larssonwas complemented by loans of key worksfrom several other Swedish and Nordic mu-seums and private collections in Sweden.The exhibition had SNISPP visitors and wasaccompanied by a richly-illustrated cata-logue in Swedish, English andGerman, withessays by Martin Olin, Görel Cavalli-Björk-man, Torsten Gunnarsson and Per I. Gedin.

Exhibition curator

Martin Olin

Exhibition design

Henrik Widenheim

Lighting design

Ljusdesign AB

Exhibition technology and installation

The Technical Department at Nationalmuseum,

under the supervision of Lennart Karlsson

CAD manager

Joakim E. Werning

Chief conservators

Helen Evans, Lena Dahlén and Maria Franzon

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Interior from the exhibition Carl Larsson: Friends & Enemies.

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Stockholm Volume OM OMNP

Exhibition administration

Anneli Carlsson

Exhibition coordinator

Lena Granath

Project manager

Erik Järmens

Education officer

Helen Hallgren Archer

Exhibition catalogue

Carl Larsson: Friends & Enemies (English edition);

Carl Larsson: Freunde & Feinde (German edition);

Carl Larsson: Vänner & ovänner (Swedish edition)

Nationalmusei utställningskatalog nr SSV

(Nationalmuseum exhibition catalogue no. SSV)

Editorial committee: Martin Olin, Anne

Dahlström and Ingrid Lindell

Graphic design: BankerWessel

ISBN: (English edition) VTUJVNJTNMMJUQQJO

ISBN: (German edition) VTUJVNJTNMMJUQRJV

ISBN: (Swedish edition) VTUJVNJTNMMJUQPJR

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NMM

Interiors from the exhibition Carl Larsson: Friends & Enemies.

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Stockholm Volume OM OMNP