Artist of the Day, August 21, 2023: Albert Edelfel, a Finnish painter (#1888)

Albert Edelfelt (1854–1905) is one of Finland’s most beloved artists. He also gained early recognition on the international art scene and travelled frequently between the Nordic countries and Paris, something that is reflected in his art. His subject matter ranges from everyday scenes of peasant life in the Finnish archipelago to prestigious society portraits, from grand history paintings to commissioned illustrations. Edelfelt’s broad and international network of painters, writers, art collectors and other cultural figures also left an imprint on his art. He portrayed the bourgeois environments off the metropolis with skill and emotion, offering intimate glimpses into the artistic circles in which he moved.

Edelfelt began his formal studies of art in 1869 at the Drawing School of the Finnish Art Society in Helsinki and continued as a student of Adolf von Becker. He then received a scholarship from the Finnish government to study history painting at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. He studied under Nicaise de Keyser, and won an award for excellence for his painting of Alexander the Great on his deathbed. He also began a long-lasting friendship with the Belgian artist Émile Claus.

Edelfelt was early to exhibit his work in solo shows, including shows in Gothenburg, Stockholm and Copenhagen. Solo exhibitions, a new phenomenon in art at the time, exemplify the era’s emerging focus on the artist as individual. For Edelfelt, the new role of the cosmopolitan artist led to status and success but was also a source of self-doubt and challenges in both his personal and his professional life.

© 2023. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Albert Edelfel or assignee. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only 

Albert Edelfelt

Queen Blanche, 1877

Burnt Village, 1879

Conveying the Child's Coffin (A Child's Funeral) 1879

Unknown title 1880

 Going to the Christening, 1880

 Portrait of Sophie Manzey, 1880

 Good Friends (Portrait of the Artist's Sister Bertha Edelfelt) 1881

 Old Woman with a Chip Basket, 1882

Girls in a Rowing Boat (Summer in the Archipelago) 1883

 Girls in a Rowing Boat, 1883

 The Parisienne (Virginie) 1883

At the Piano, 1884

 Boys Playing on the Shore, 1886

 Study for the Boys Playing on the Shore, 1884

Young Woman with a Fan, 1884

 Pasteur's portrait, 1885

The Boys Workhouse, Helsinki 1885

Girl Knitting a Sock, 1886

Girl with a Rake, 1886

Shipbuilders,1886

Woman and Parasol, 1886

Luxembourg Gardens, Paris, 1887

Portrait Study of Countess Augusta Lewenhaupt, 1887

Women outside the Church at Ruokolahti, 1887

The Artist's Son Erik in a Pram, 1889

Christ and Mary Magdalene, a Finnish Legend, 1890

 Kaukola Ridge at Sunset, 1890

March of the Björneborg Regiment, 1892

 Larin Paraske, 1893

Portrait of the Artist's Wife Ellan Edelfelt, 1896

Virgin Mary in the Rose Garden, 1898

Summer evening

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