Edwards .:. Swedish Art since 1945

Edwards, Folke [ed.],
Swedish Art since 1945. Göteborg: Bergendahls, [1965]. 55 Seiten mit Abbildungen. Broschiert mit Klammerheftung. 4to. 280 g

---

* Paletten international. - Stempel auf dem Titelblatt.
Bestell-Nr.157215

---

Edwards | Schweden | Kunstgeschichte

---

INTRODUCTION From at least one point of view contemporary Swedish art is provincial: it has had no international influence. As a matter of fact it is almost totally ignored abroad. Our welfare system, our architecture, glassware, furniture and film have for decades made a considerable international impact, but in art we have created no image. This is corroborated by a number of large survey exhibitions recently held in Europe and the USA. In the Documenta II at Kassel 1959 Sweden was represented by one artist, Endre Nemes, in the Documenta III 1964 there was none. At the Tate exhibition "Painting and Sculpture of a Decade, 195464", there was also only one Swede, Evert Lundquist. And so forth ... When the fashionable Italian art review "Metro" recently published a special catalogue on the 200 leading artists in Europe and the USA —with critics like Lawrence Alloway, Gillo Dorfles and Alain Jouffroy on the jury — no Swede was to be found. These examples may suffice. This lack of international status is, I believe, due to our cultural isolation rather than to a failure to produce significant art. It seems hard to deny that Swedish art has a high general level, even if rather few individual peaks — and from an international point of view only the peaks count. The isolation on the other hand has many causes: a traditional political neutrality which has accentuated our position in the European periphery, the selfcontentment of the artist in a prospering welfare state, the remarkable lack of interest from the government in establishing a cultural image abroad — just to mention a few examples close at hand. A certain change, however, has lately been noticeable: in 1962 Sweden reentered the Biennale at Venice after ten years' absence, and in the last few years an increasing number of Swedish art exhibitions have been sent abroad, sponsored by the Swedish Institute. But so far the question of seeking international recognition has depended entirely on the initiative of the individual. The most successful attempts in recent years have been made by Evert Lundquist, Max Walter Svanberg, Endre Nemes, 011e Bwrtling, Bengt Lindstrom, Wiking Svensson, byvind Fahlstriim, Carl Fredrik Reutersward and Per Olov Ultvedt.
This international edition of the art quarterly Paletten has no other intention than to serve as an elementary introduction to contemporary Swedish art. It is based on personal selection and of course on a rather short perspective: what seems significant today may fade away and disappear tomorrow. Two other important limitations must be noted. First I have almost entirely concentrated on painting and sculpture and left out the prolific graphic production. Secondly I have only dealt with those artists and movements that have come forth since 1945: almost all of the artists commented on here have made their public break through in the postwar period. This may produce a rather narrow and biased view of the contemporary Swedish art situation, since many of the prominent prewar artists still play an important role, but it also gives a clearer comprehension of recent developments. This publication has been made possible mainly through the generous support from the Swedish Institute and the Wilhelm and Martina Lundgren Fund, to whom we express our warmest thanks.
Folke Edwards

---

INDEX
page
EVERT LUNDQUIST 6
STAFFAN HALLSTRöM 8
SIRI DERKERT 10
ALF LINDBERG 12
LENNART RODHE 14
ARNE JONES 16
LAGE LINDELL 18
TORSTEN RENQVIST 20
OLLE BÆRTLING 22
MAX WALTER SVANBERG 24
ENDRE NEMES 26
C. O. HULTÉN 28
WIKING SVENSSON 30
RUNE JANSSON 32
PALLE PERNEVI 34
TORSTEN ANDERSSON 36
ERLAND BRAND 38
MARTIN HOLMGREN 40
New Tendencies
WEST COAST EXPRESSIONISTS 42
EAST COAST LYRISTS 44
YOUNG SCULPTURE 46
NEODADAISTS 48
STRUCTURALISTS 52

---