Unknown

Eruption of Vesuvius 1776

1776

A rare ink and watercolor drawing by Carl Palme, dated 1921 and signed “CP 21,” captures the intimate character of Positano’s narrow alleys. Measuring ca. 20 x 24 cm without frame. Inscribed on the back that it´s a preparatory study for a larger oil painting. Early 20th century works by Palme are scarce. Carl Palme (1879–1960): Painter, Printmaker, and Cosmopolitan Artist. He was born in Stockholm in 1879, the son of bank director Henrik Palme and Anna Lavonius. He grew up on the family estate of Svalnäs, now a guest home and senior residence. From an early age, Palme showed a sensitivity to both literature and art, interests that would later merge in his career as painter, draftsman, printmaker, and author. His artistic education began in London at the Slade School of Fine Art (1900–1901), where he was introduced to modern European currents. From 1902 to 1904, he studied in Munich at Wassily Kandinsky’s art school, absorbing early expressions of color and form. In 1907, Palme moved to Paris, where he became the first Swedish student of Henri Matisse. Together with fellow Scandinavian artists, he was instrumental in founding the Académie Matisse, a collective of young painters who rented a large studio in Paris. Matisse himself visited weekly, critiquing their work and shaping what would later become a decisive wave of modernism in Swedish art. Among the group were such notable names as Isaac Grünewald, Sigrid Hjertén, and Einar Jolin...

A finely tuned oval drawing by the Finnish artist Ester Helenius depicting a young woman in profile seated on a chair. The room is suggested only by a diffuse background. Signed and ...