Nationalmuseum has acquired a spectacular miniature by Adélaïde Labille-Guiard. One of the most important women artists in late 18th-century France, she was not previously represented in the museum’s collections. The work is interesting on account of the motif alone, depicting a woman, albeit an amateur, in the role of artist.
Nationalmuseum has acquired three important Flemish and Dutch cabinet paintings from the collection of Count Gustaf Adolf Sparre – a landscape by Gijsbrecht Leytens and two genre scenes in smaller format by David Teniers the Younger and Jacob Toorenvliet. The paintings have gilt frames decorated in Gustavian style, with the two latter works bearing cartouches at the top.
Thanks to a generous donation, 10 photographic portraits by Hans Gedda have been added to the Swedish National Portrait Gallery. With his creative interpretations and unexpected manifestations, Gedda adds another dimension to the subjects portrayed, who include Evert Taube, Hans Alfredson, Tage Danielsson, Nils Poppe, Niklas Ek and Sara Lidman.
Last spring, the Swedish government gave the go-ahead for planning work to start on the renovation of Nationalmuseum. Next year, the collections and museum operations will temporarily vacate the building. Members of the public, both in Sweden and abroad, will still have the opportunity to experience the art thanks to collaborations, touring exhibitions and temporary venues.
Nationalmuseum has added a table with a porphyry mosaic top to its applied art and design collection. The tabletop was produced by Elfdals Porphyrverk around 1860. The table, an important addition to the museum’s collection of 19th-century Swedish furniture, is on display on Level 1 of the museum.
This spring, Nationalmuseum acquired a pair of superb quality nightstands with royal provenance. The nightstands are veneered in mahogany, with blacked lion’s paw feet, gilded North Stars and four winged sphinxes. They are an important addition to the museum’s collection of Swedish furniture from the early 19th century.
Nationalmuseum’s extensive collection of Dutch old masters has been enriched with the addition of a leading work by Jan Lievens. The painting of Saint Paul is dated 1627–1629 and was originally part of the Sparre collection. This is one of Nationalmuseum’s most significant acquisitions of recent years.
Nationalmuseum has acquired an elegant necklace by silversmith and artist Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe. In the mid-20th century, she transformed the way jewellery was made and appreciated through her design language and her choice of materials. Dating from the beginning of the 1950s, the necklace has a brass neck ring with a pendant in various woods and ivory.
Nationalmuseum’s major autumn exhibition Pride and Prejudice opens on 27 September. The focus is on female artists in France and Sweden during the 18th and 19th centuries and their opportunities to become professionals in their field. The show includes works by some of the women who managed to break into the world of the Royal Academies.
Nationalmuseum has acquired a very rare Jugendstil table lamp from 1915. It is one of only two known objects designed by Axel Enoch Boman for Orrefors. The lamp can be seen in the exhibition Light and Darkness which runs until 3 February.
On 20 June, Nationalmuseum launches its summer exhibition on light and darkness in art and life. The show presents examples of how our most renowned artists have used different techniques to mimic light and create depth. The core focus is on Nordic fin de siècle art, with around a hundred works on display from the museum’s own collection.
Queen Lovisa Ulrika’s memorial cup was donated to the museum at the annual meeting of the Friends of Nationalmuseum. This unique object was made by silversmith Pehr Zethelius and presented as a memento to Johan Wingård, Bishop of Gothenburg, in thanks for the funeral sermon that he gave for the deceased Queen in 1782.
