Acke Hallgren - An Artist's Fate

At the beginning of his artistic career, Acke Hallgren worked as a draughtsman for, among others, Albert Engström’s satirical humour magazine Strix. This experience undoubtedly contributed to his later skill as a portrait painter. It is precisely drawings, highly personal sketchbooks, and portraits in various techniques that form the foundation of the collection of works by Acke Hallgren that Crafoord Stockholm is delighted to present.
Hallgren was born in Stockholm in 1885 and studied at the Technical School and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm, where he was awarded a Royal Medal, as well as in Paris. Between 1916 and 1928, he lived in Rome and San Remo in Italy.
Acke contracted tuberculosis in his teenage years. His wife, Stina, came from a well-established German family whose parents were perhaps not entirely convinced that a limping, impoverished artist was the ideal choice of life partner. Yet in 170 typewritten pages that Stina left behind—most likely the manuscript for a book—a very happy marriage and a joyful period in Italy are described, despite the couple’s modest and simple way of life.
Acke Hallgren was a close friend of, and maintained a frequent correspondence with, Gösta Adrian-Nilsson (GAN), but his gentle and somewhat cautious personality made the promotion of his own artistic profile less forceful. That role was taken on by Stina.
In addition to portraits, Acke Hallgren painted landscapes and, in particular, scenes from the bustling life of the city. His style may be described as naturalistic naïvism, in which he sought to unite impressions from the Italian Early Renaissance with modern Expressionism, rendered in earthy, muted colours. Over time, his palette became increasingly luminous and light-filled.
When Acke and Stina returned to Stockholm, they first lived by St Eriksbron, overlooking the Karlberg Canal, which served as the motif for several paintings, and later in a studio apartment near Sergels torg. Among the portraits, their son Claes appears frequently; he tragically lost his life in an accident at the age of just seven.
Although Acke Hallgren never became a “great name,” he achieved genuine recognition. He was in demand for public commissions and, for example, executed church paintings in Italy. The large triptych The Bacchantes long greeted guests at the legendary Grand Hotel in Lund, but he was unfortunately forced to decline the offer to decorate a room in Stockholm City Hall due to failing health.
Acke Hallgren is represented in the collections of, among others, the Nationalmuseum, Moderna Museet, Prins Eugens Waldemarsudde, Gothenburg Museum of Art, and the National Portrait Gallery at Gripsholm Castle. He died at the age of just 55; Stina lived to be 89. They rest together at Norra Begravningsplatsen in Stockholm.