Between Nationalism and Scandinavism: Swedishness and Swedish Identity as Central Themes in the Visual Arts of the 19th Century and the Turn of the 20th Century
Between Nationalism and Scandinavism: Swedishness and Swedish Identity as Central Themes in the Visual Arts of the 19th Century and the Turn of the 20th Century
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Original abstract
In the mid-19th century, “Swedishness” and its representations became significant themes in Swedish art. Owing to socio-cultural changes and political developments in 19th-century and early 20th-century Europe, artists were compelled to respond to the growing demand for the construction of national identities. This led to a search for “truly national” motifs rooted in history, folklore, and the Romantic tradition. In the case of Sweden, the “national” was derived from a shared Nordic heritage – not only from Viking history and medieval literature, but also from traditional customs and folklore (Facos, 1998). This Swedish–Nordic artistic identity emerged from the Romantic idea of Scandinavism (or, more broadly, Nordism) and was reinforced by the New Romantic or National Romantic painting movement at the turn of the 20th century, as Nordic characteristics were more readily recognised in this form by foreign critics (Parkinson, 2017). This article presents key figures in Swedish art and the creation of that of a Swedish national style in the nineteenth century, with a particular focus on landscape and genre painters. Special attention is given to artists interested in the regionalism of Dalarna, such as Carl Larsson and Anders Zorn. The aim is to examine how the concept of “Swedishness” evolved within a broader, contemporary context. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of Swedish national art from the 19th century to the early 20th century. The approach adopted in this article is the result of interdisciplinary research spanning art history, cultural history, anthropology (including studies on mythology), and Scandinavian literary studies. It draws upon established conclusions regarding national art in Scandinavia, as well as recent perspectives that reflect contemporary attitudes towards the representation of Indigenous peoples in the Nordic countries.