Hugo Birger
Coastal scene from Särö, on the west coast of Sweden
Signed and dated with dedication: ”Till Fru Hilda Keiller vördsamligdt o med tacksamhet Fr. Hugo Birger, Särö 83.” Oil on panel 47.5 x 65 cm.
Provenance
Hilda Keiller ( [1839-1927], née Falck, married to industrialist and entrepreneur James Keiller [1836-1918], Managing director of Göteborgs Mekaniska Verkstad, founded by his father, Scottish entrepreneur Alexander Keiller);
their son James (Jemmy) Keiller Jr ( [1867-1962] married to Alice Lyon [1869-1968] ); subsequently by descent within the family; Christie's, London, "Scandinavian Pictures, Drawings, Prints and Sculpture", March 29, 1990, lot 213 ; private collection.
Exhibitions
(Probably) Göteborgs Konstmuseum (Gothenburg Art Museum, Sweden), autumn 1883.
More information
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Artist
Hugo Birger was a Swedish visual artist born in Stockholm, where he studied at the Swedish Royal Academy of Fine Arts. Birger later travelled to Paris where he spent time with Carl Larsson and Carl Skånberg, and he later had his debut in a Paris Salon. Birger was highly active in Spain and France, where he had a shared studio with Ernst Josephson. Due to Birger’s severe rheumatism, the artist chose to make the Mediterranean into his permanent home due to its warm climate. Birger’s most famous artwork is "Skandinaviska konstnärernas frukost på Café Ledoyen" from 1886 which depicts a breakfast setting shared amongst Birger’s colleagues in Paris featuring Alfred Wahlberg and Georg Pauli. Birger's paintings are executed with great skill and lively coloration, showcasing his mastery in capturing sunlight.
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