Nationalmuseum’s collection of Swedish-French paintings from the 18th century now includes a portrait painted by Adolf Ulrik Wertmüller. It depicts Henri Bertholet-Campan, the son of the French Queen’sFirst Lady of the Bedchamber Henriette Genet-Campan. The acquisition adds an important piece to the fascinating puzzle of Wertmüller’s portrait of Marie Antoinette.
The Swedish National Portrait Gallery has added a photograph by Rolf Winquist of Gertrud Fridh in the role of Medea. It is one of the photographer’s most powerful portraits and dates from 1951. The acquisition is especially significant because it is the collection’s first work by Winquist.
A new portrait of HM Queen Silvia has been donated to the Swedish National Portrait Gallery, which is managed by Nationalmuseum. The portrait, a gift in honour of the Queen’s 70th birthday, was painted earlier this year by Swedish artist Urban Larsson. It will be unveiled at Gripsholm Castle on 11 June.
On 13 June the exhibition Carl Larsson - Friends & Enemies opens in Nationalmuseum’s temporary venue at Konstakademien, the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts. Focusing on Carl Larsson’s networks and relationships, the exhibition reflects the Swedish art world in the period from 1870 to 1920.
On Saturday 1 June, the 2013 Portrait of Honour will be unveiled at Gripsholm Castle. The subject this year is Hans Blix, who has been portrayed in bronze by sculptor Peter Linde. Dr Blix achieved worldwide recognition for his work on behalf of the international community as director general of the IAEA and chairman of the UN weapons inspection commission.
Gripsholm Castle reopens on Wednesday 15 May and will be open daily from 10am to 4pm until 30 September. Guided tours of the castle in Swedish and English will be available daily. From 16 June visitors can enjoy Music at Gripsholm, a series of concerts.
Nationalmuseum has acquired a stoneware sculpture by the artist Eva Hild. Entitled Splay 2, the work is typical of the artist’s eccentric designs, featuring large, organic shapes in fine material. Hild’s remarkable designs have achieved international recognition in recent years.
For the duration of the building’s renovation, one of Nationalmuseum’s greatest artworks has been moved into storage from its location on the upper staircase.Carl Larsson’s Midwinter Sacrifice measures almost 90 square metres and has been in the museum’s collections since 1997.
Purchased by Nationalmuseum last year from a British art dealer, The Faithful Friendship is a rare work by the French sculptor Jean-Baptiste Stouf, exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1795. Stouf was a close friend of Johan Tobias Sergel during their student years in Rome more than two decades earlier.
Following a procurement process, Nationalmuseum in Stockholm has appointed the London based brand consultancy Jane Wentworth Associates. The project will start in autumn this year setting the direction for the opening of the new Nationalmuseum in 2017.
Nationalmuseum will open its temporary exhibition venue at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts at Fredsgatan 12 in Stockholm with an exhibition entitled Carl Larsson – Friends and Enemies. Focusing on Carl Larsson’s networks and relationships, the exhibition reflects the Swedish art world in the period from 1870 to 1920. In all, about 120 works by Larsson and his contemporaries will be on show.
Nationalmuseum has added a large porcelain lidded urn to its ceramics collection. The urn was designed by Gunnar Nylund, one of the most prominent Scandinavian ceramicists of the 20th century. Although the urn is most definitely a luxury item, it is decorated with images of workers, factories and cityscapes, reflecting the contemporary cult of the machine.
