Oil on canvas, 49 x 55 cm, including frame 66 x 71.5 cm. Signed OLLE OLSSON HAGALUND. Executed in the 1940s according to label a tergo. Marked no. 812 on stretcher and frame. Original frame executed by the artist.
Stockholms Auktionsverk would like to thank Lena Olsson-Petrén for the expertise regarding the current artwork.
PROVENANCE
Private Swedish collection.
EXHIBITED
Riksförbundet för bildande konst, exhibition no. 90.
Liljevalchs konsthall, Stockholm "Olle Olsson Hagalund Memorial Exhibition" October 12 - November 30, 1973, cat. no. 109, under the title "Karlbergs slott".
Olle Olsson Hagalund is primarily associated with his depictions of Hagalund, the distinctive shantytown in Solna that emerged during the late 19th century and was demolished during the 1960s in connection with the expansion of the Million Programme. The colorful, densely packed wooden houses, often built with simple means but richly decorated with gingerbread trim, formed a labyrinth of winding streets and courtyards in the district. It was an environment characterized by both hardship and vitality, and it is precisely this character that Olsson Hagalund returned to throughout his artistic career, not as a nostalgic backdrop but as a lived reality he was a part of himself.
However, he did not stick solely to Hagalund but occasionally sought out other parts of Stockholm. Karlberg Palace was then close at hand. Here he encountered a motif of a different scale than the small wooden houses, a more monumental building but with a facade and a richness of form that well corresponded to his interest in decorative details and clear silhouettes.
In this painting, we encounter Karlberg Palace from the park side, bathing in the clear light of spring. The intense blue sky contrasts with the green lawn, and the palace facade appears in an enhanced, warmer tone. In front of the building, a woman has stopped, dressed in yellow, as if to take in the sight of the flowering fruit tree whose bright clusters of blossoms spread out over the foreground. In the trees to the left, the first delicate leaves can be glimpsed - an image of that short, expectant time when spring is just about to bloom and everything still feels possible.
Has resale rights.
