A Bluestocking Knits

Because there seem to be so many blues in Scandiavian art, I thought I’d devote a "room" in my imaginary museum to Scandinavian blues —

Carl Larsson, "Suzanne and Another" (1901), private collection.  This really speaks to me for some reason, perhaps the blue of Suzanne’s dress and her long braid, and her standing on a chair to decorate her new bedroom, the fact that she’s probably getting paint on her dress but she’s concentrating so much that she doesn’t notice.  Apparently the frieze is still there in the Larsson home in Sundborn.  ("Another" refers to the worker on the ladder outside, Carl Oscar Persson, a Sundborn local and the Larssons’ house-painter, who appears in a number of Larsson’s paintings.)

Peder Severin Krøyer, "Summer Afternoon on the South Beach of Skagen" (1893), Skagen Museum, Denmark.  This painting is so iconic that it is almost too much so, and becomes perhaps more than a bit of a stereotype and like much of Larsson’s work quite sentimental.  But it is lovely, so filled with light and blue, that I can’t help admiring it.

Christen Købke, "The Landscape Painter Frederik Sødring" (1832), Den Hirschsprungske Samling, Copenhagen.  I adore this fellow, adore everything about this portrait, from the rather weedy little ivy plant and the pink and white striped cushion cover, the jumble of stuff on the table and wall, to his casual pose and the twinkle in his eye.

Peder Severin Krøyer, "Ettermiddagssol og Havblik (Late-Afternoon Sun and Calm Sea)" (1899), Johannes Larsen Museum, Kerteminde, Denmark.  I can hardly get enough of Krøyer’s beach scenes, the light shining on the waves in this one, and the even more intense blues than usual.

Peder Severin Krøyer, "Stenbjerg med Marie Malende (Stenbjerg with Marie Painting)" (1889).  It’s easy to see why Skagen captivated so many artists, with its marvellous light and the spare beauty of the sand and the waves.  I can hardly wait to go there myself.