At the turn of the century and during the first decades of the 1900s, art was in a period of transformation. Traditional landscape painting and portraiture continued to thrive, but were challenged by new techniques, more modern subjects, and a freer view of everyday life. Artists began to seek new forms of expression, inspired both by contemporary movements in Europe and by a desire to capture a society in motion.
In the auction Art from the Early 20th Century, we encounter this wide range. Carl L. Lindqvist’s Harvest Time from 1908 combines depictions of rural life with a more personal visual language, while Wilhelm Smith’s portraits from the 1910s bear traces of a new psychological realism. Edvin Ollers’ chalk drawing of the city rooftops from 1914 reveals an urban modernity, in contrast to Jean Rosengren’s coastal landscapes of Skåne and Carl Brandt’s tranquil lake views.
New techniques were also explored. David Ljungdahl’s Conversation in the Compartment and The Interrogation demonstrate how mixed media could add drama to everyday scenes, while Ira Bise’s 1913 lithograph of a parrot introduces a decorative playfulness. Sculpture too found its place, as in Herman Neujd’s plaster work from 1921.
The auction offers a glimpse into an era of artistic renewal, where tradition and experiment met and where the foundation for the modern expressions of the 20th century was laid.
