OSCAR REUTERSVÄRD. Impossible figure, color lithograph, signed, Printer Proof.

Sheet dimensions 68 x 46 cm.

Oscar Reutersvärd (1915-2002) was a Swedish artist born in Stockholm and died in Lund. He was a painter, draftsman, sculptor and professor. Reutersvärd is best known for creating "impossible figures" – drawings of objects that appear normal at first glance, but cannot be recreated three-dimensionally due to distorted perspective that violates the laws of trigonometry. An example of his work is "The Impossible Triangle" and "The Devil's Trident".

He began sketching impossible figures as early as school and his first known such drawing was a series of cubes forming a triangle. In 1934, his first impossible figure was published, a triangle later called the Penrose triangle. His work has even graced Swedish stamps, engraved by Czesław Słania.

After training at various art schools, Reutersvärd became a docent at Stockholm University in 1953 and later a professor of art history with art theory at Lund University in 1964. His work has been compared to the Dutch artist MC Escher, who also explored impossible figures, but Reutersvärd's work was more focused on geometric shapes.

In addition to his impossible figures, Reutersvärd was also a sculptor. He created sculptures with chains and other objects that seemed to strive upwards. His work has become public art in several Swedish municipalities, such as "Trippelrotation" in Helsingborg.

Reutersvärd was also a professor of art history and art theory, and he lectured on children's analytical powers of observation and how it was better than that of adults. He is represented in several museums around the world, including the National Museum and the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, and he died summer resident in Hulterstad on Öland.

His artistry included over 2,500 different drawings, and his work has been published internationally. His contribution was honored with Swedish stamps in 1982, and his sculptures and impossible figures continue to inspire and fascinate today.