Carl Larsson
(Swedish, 1853–1919)
Portrait of a Woman Seated at a Table Reading a Newspaper
Object Details
Artist
Carl Larsson
Medium
Pencil and scratching on scratchboard
Dimensions
Image (Scratchboard): 18 7/16 × 12 1/4 inches (46.8 × 31.1 cm)
Frame: 29 3/4 × 23 3/4 × 1 inches (75.6 × 60.3 × 2.5 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired through the Ernest I. White, Class of 1893, Endowment Fund, through the Herbert F. Johnson, Class of 1922, Endowment, and through the David M. Solinger, Class of 1926, Endowment
Object
Number
2011.096
Carl Larsson is best known for the idyllic images he painted of his family at their home, Little Hyt(…)
Carl Larsson is best known for the idyllic images he painted of his family at their home, Little Hyttnäs, in Sandborn, about an hour north of Stockholm. His wife, Karin Bergöö, was a textile artist, and she, their eight children, and other family members and friends were the subject of much of his output. This portrait is of their foster daughter, Anna Maria, who appears to have been interrupted in the process of reading her paper. This briefly captured moment is belied by the laborious process that Larsson used to draw her, which would have necessitated a series of sittings. The surface is scratchboard, a kind of heavy card with a white coating printed with a pattern of fine lines and dots. He applied a combination of techniques to create light and form, drawing on the card with a lead pencil and scratching away the surface to give strong white highlights.(“FIGURE/STUDY: Drawings from the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art,” text by Nancy E. Green and presented at Carlton Hobbs, LLC January 25-February 2, 2019)
