ALLAN ÖSTERLIND. River landscape.

Oil on canvas laid on cardboard, 32 x 38 cm, including frame 56 x 64 cm. Signed A. Österlind.

PROVENANCE
Swedish Club, Paris.

Allan Österlind, born in Stockholm in 1855, is one of the Swedish artists who in practice came to be more French than Swedish. After two years at the Art Academy in Stockholm, he traveled in 1877 to Paris, where he was accepted at the École des Beaux-Arts and studied sculpture for Cavelier. Österlind soon switched to painting, however, and already in 1880 he made his debut at the Paris Salon with a cartoon of a woman's head — the start of a long and successful exhibition career. He was awarded both medals and honorable mentions, and came to be counted as an equal among the foremost Scandinavian artists of the time such as Ernst Josephson, Carl Larsson and Christian Krogh.

From 1879, Österlind resided permanently in France after marrying French woman Eugénie Carré. His works were purchased by the French state and placed in museums around the country, and he was also awarded the Legion of Honour. In Sweden he exhibited on several occasions, and his works were also incorporated into Swedish collections. He was also an esteemed portraitist, and in his circle of friends was the writer August Strindberg, who wanted to hire him as a book illustrator — a project that unfortunately never came to fruition.

Allan Österlind was a central figure among the artists who gathered in Bréhat in Brittany during the 1880s. There he often painted side by side with Ernst Josephson — sometimes so closely that they shared both model and motif. During Josephson's periods of illness, Österlind was a loyal friend and companion. Their common interest in spiritism also left an imprint, not least in Österlind's personality and radiance.

Artistically, Österlind combined a French naturalistic open-air painting with narrative elements, a legacy of the Düsseldorf school. His paintings often bear titles that hint at events: An Accident on a French Village Street, Toothache or A Deathbed in Brittany. He was a distinctively skilled draughtsman, and his color treatment is characterized by a low-key, evocative colorite.

The current work, River Landscape, is a typical example of Allan Österlind's early French period. Done with pastel in a uniform and subtle color scheme, it captures the gentle light of the half-day reflected in the water. There is no clear narrative motive here, but the focus is instead on the mood and the stillness of nature — a moment of peace and reflection.

The work belongs to the collection built up by the artists' club in Stockholm, where Österlind was a frequent guest during its first decade. In addition to this landscape, three plate portraits of club members as well as a pastel of his wife are preserved in the collection.

All lots in this themed auction sold without reserve.