Larsson's Luck

How many know Carl Larsson? He was born poor in 1853 in Stockholm. At the age of 13, he was admitted to the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts, thus leaving the school for the poor.

Shy and socially inferior, he found it difficult to settle in, but little by little his indisputable talent transformed him into a central figure of the Academy.

He worked for a few years as an illustrator for books and newspapers and moved to Paris where he lived for 5 years without his works, so different from the Academy, but also from Impressionism, finding success.

In this frustrating time Carl Larsson's luck came: Karin Bergoo, designer and painter, who very soon became his wife.

Karin became his point of balance and Larsson abandoned the oil technique, which did not suit his style, and switched to watercolor. The couple decided to live in Falun, a small Swedish village.

The house completely built according to their colorful and innovative taste it influenced all of Sweden. Today it is a museum to be enjoyed.

The house, the 7 children, the family became Carl's favorite subjects who created fine compositions, sometimes with a subtle sense of irony.

With the advent of color printing, its popularity increased dramatically: this harmony and happiness spread everywhere and the reproductions of his watercolors, collected in a book entitled "The house in the sun", sold tens of thousands of copies.

The international art circuit considered him an "illustrator", therefore inferior to the art of Monet and Cèzanne.

But if in these paintings we can undoubtedly see the immediate and genuine expression of his personality, how can we not call Art in effect the deep emotion of love for his wife and children performed with great technical expertise?

It matters little. We are lucky enough to enjoy his paintings that I would never stop looking at with joy.