On October 1, 1873, Karin Bergöö began her studies at the Handicraft School in Stockholm, Sweden. She was just two days shy of turning 14. The classes lasted ten hours a day, seven days a week. Shortly after Christmas, she also enrolled at the French school. Living away from home in the capital, the preserved letters to her mother allow us to follow her intense schooling from a distance of 150 years. In 1877, she was admitted to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. Five years later, she traveled to the Scandinavian artist colony in Grez-sur-Loing, a little outside of Paris. It was there that she fell in love with Carl Larsson, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Karin with their daughter Brita, one of their eight children. © Wikimedia Commons
An Artistic Direction Rooted in the Home
However, sometimes historians need a little time to gain perspective, and this is the case with Karin Bergöö Larsson. After marrying in 1883 and a few trips between Stockholm and Paris, the artist couple settled in Sundborn. It was there that she directed her artistic practice to the decoration of their shared home. In line with the changing artistic ideals of the time, they created a gesamtkunstwerk, a “total work of art” in which textiles, furniture and even clothing were conceived as interconnected elements of a cohesive whole.
Karin Bergöö Larsson’s creative force and distinctive sense of style were central to the artistic world she shared with her husband. While Carl captured the family home in his celebrated paintings, it was Karin who shaped much of its character. She turned her artistry inward, focusing on interiors with an emphasis on weaving and embroidery, while also designing furniture, as well as clothing for herself and their children.
Bold usage of colour and patterns are descriptive towards her creative expression and bold usage of colours. © Wikimedia Commons
Today, Karin Bergöö Larsson occupies a well-established place in Swedish design history. However, her international breakthrough didn’t come until 1997 when the Victoria and Albert Museum in London held a major exhibition on Sweden’s perhaps most influential artist couple.
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While Karin was responsible for much of the furnishing, textiles and overall atmosphere, Carl decorated the walls and fireplaces with his paintings. © Wikimedia Commons
Auctionet’s archive holds several examples of Carl Larsson’s extraordinary paintings, but also Karin’s beautifully simple shelf made of solid glazed pine. Once created in her modest way for the family’s flowers in Sundborn, it also foreshadowed the design language of the coming modernism.
Get inspired by Karin Larsson´s Style
As her timeless designs continues to live and inspire, we have created a selection from previous auctions.
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