First Carl Larsson exhibition in France

The first major exhibition in France of works by Carl Larsson opens at the Petit Palais in Paris on 7 March, with the majority of works on loan from Nationalmuseum. This exhibition is one of the initiatives to keep art from the collections on public view during renovation of the Nationalmuseum building.

On 7 March a Carl Larsson exhibition opens at the Petit Palais in Paris, the first time an exhibition featuring this artist and his work has gone on show in France. In all, some 120 works will be on display, most of which are on loan from Nationalmuseum. The pieces are a mixture of watercolours, oil paintings, graphic works and furniture. The exhibition has been produced by a team including Carl-Johan Olsson, curator at Nationalmuseum, and Torsten Gunnarsson, the museum’s former head of collections.

- It’s a true pleasure to introduce such a great Swedish artist as Carl Larsson to the French public, said Berndt Arell, Director General of Nationalmuseum. It’s also important for us to be able to exhibit artworks from our collections as widely as possible while the museum building is closed for renovation. The exhibition at the Petit Palais is a superb example of a successful co-production.

With the Nationalmuseum building closed for renovation until 2017, the museum is able to loan out artworks from its collections to a greater extent than usual, both within Sweden and worldwide. Selected pieces from the collections are on display in temporary galleries at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts (Konstakademien) in Stockholm and in exhibitions co-produced with regional museums and art galleries across Sweden.

- In 1877, Carl Larsson came to Paris for the first time, said Christophe Leribault, Director of the Petit Palais. He wanted to try his luck in the city but found it difficult to find his place. However, he managed to find happiness moving to a quiet place in Grez-sur-Loing. It’s in this artist’s community that he met his future wife and where they had their first son. Even if the French government started to buy his artworks in 1884 and he won gold medals during the 1889 and 1900 Parisian Universal Exhibitions, a retrospective never has been planned about Larsson in France. I am especially happy that, thanks to the immense kindness of the Swedish museums and collectors, Paris can pay homage to this wonderful artist whose dream was to succeed in this city. Many thanks especially to the Nationalmuseum of Stockholm for lending us artworks and support with the scientific team.

The official opening of Carl Larsson, l’imagier de la Suède, will take place on 6 March in the presence of Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel of Sweden. The exhibition runs at the Petit Palais in Paris from 7 March until 7 June 2014. For more information, see www.petitpalais.paris.fr.

For exhibition information and press images
Mathilde Beaujard, press officer, Petit Palais,  mathilde.beaujard@paris.fr, +33 1 5343 4014, +33 6 6141 7515

Contact at Nationalmuseum
Hanna Tottmar, press officer, Nationalmuseum, hanna.tottmar@nationalmuseum.se, +46 767 234632

Caption
Carl Larsson, Daddy’s Room, from A Home. Photo: Nationalmuseum