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Anna Gardell-Ericson, painter of Swedish nature

Artist from Gotland who lived in Switzerland and Paris

watercolour painting of a path by a lake in a park, a woman sits on a park bench under trees in a variety of shades of green.
by
Adrian Murphy (opens in new window) (Europeana Foundation)

Anna Gardell-Ericson was a Swedish artist whose paintings and watercolours depict the beauty of Swedish nature and landscapes.

watercolour artwork showing a stream surrounded by green trees and plants.
black and white photograph, portrait of Anna Gardell.

Born in Visby on the island of Gotland in 1853, her talent was seen in her early years. Aged sixteen, she went to Switzerland to study music but soon she switched to art.

Later, she studied at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm. In 1879, she moved to Paris to continue her studies.

black and white photograph of Anna Gardell-Ericson with a child on her lap.
painting of a pond surrounded by green trees and plants.

There, she was able to study French landscape painting, and honed her craft by making copies of artworks by the influential landscape artist Camille Corot, among others.

She participated in exhibitions and salons, earning a contract to supply watercolours to art dealers Goupil & Cie.

watercolour artwork showing three children sitting on grass in front of a cottage.
watercolour, sailing boats at a jetty in a moonlit harbour.

In 1882, Anna Gardell married Johan Ericson, a Swedish landscape painter. They lived together in Paris until 1884, when a cholera outbreak forced them to return to Sweden.

watercolour artwork showing people, horses, carts on a path by a river, with buildings behind.

They moved to Gothenburg, where Anna continued to paint.

Her paintings were included in Swedish exhibitions such as those of the Association of Swedish Female Artists. Artworks were also exhibited internationally such as at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago and in exhibitions in London, Montreal and Munich.

watercolour painting, a woman drawing at a desk in front of a window in a bedroom.

Between 1889 and 1890, the couple were the joint heads of the Gothenburg Drawing School (now known as the Valand Academy). Many of Anna's artworks depict landscapes in or near Gothenburg.

watercolour artwork, boats on a snow-covered quay in a harbour.
watercolour artwork showing a city scene, with boats on a quay with buildings and a harbour in the background.

Nature and the environment are recurring themes in Anna Gardell-Ericson's art.

She specialised in coastal scenes and landscapes with lakes or rivers. Inspired by French outdoor painting, her landscapes are romantic and idyllic. She often painted Visby, her hometown, and scenes from Marstrand, an island near Gothenburg where she and Johan Ericson often holidayed.

watercolour painting, a pier extends into a body of water with boats in the background under a cloudy blue sky.

Anna Gardell-Ericson died in Stockholm in 1939, aged 85. Today her artworks are found in museums in Gothenburg and Stockholm, including the National Museum and several other museums around Sweden and abroad.

 

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