Einar Nerman

Einar Nerman studied in 1909-1910 with the famous Henri Matisse as a teacher in Paris, at "L'académie Matisse".

During his student years in Paris, Einar Nerman painted portraits of several Swedish schoolmates. The National Museum in Stockholm has over the years acquired a number of precisely these artist portraits.
The National Museum's collection therefore includes Einar Nerman's portraits of, among others, Isaac Grünewald, Einar Jolin, Arthur Percy, Leander Engström and Birger Simonsson. They belonged to the artist group "De unga", whose first exhibition in Stockholm (1909) is regarded as the breakthrough of modernism in Swedish art.

During the 1920s, Einar Nerman worked as a cartoonist for The Tatler magazine in London, where he achieved fame for accurate caricatures of celebrities.

After a few years as a visual artist in New York, Einar Nerman established himself as an accurate portrait painter in Stockholm. Swedish celebrities such as Greta Garbo, Signe Hasso and the "Little Prince of Haga" (future King Carl XVI Gustav) were among those who were accurately portrayed.

In addition, Einar Nerman made illustrations for books by, among others, Selma Lagerlöf and August Blanche.

Einar Nerman is the creator of "Solstickepojken", a well-known symbol since the 1930s.
The fair-haired and curly boy was, from the beginning, a fair-haired and curly girl. The painting was based on Einar Nerman's original images of the fairytale character Tummelisa, who is depicted in the auction's painting.

But Einar Nerman felt pressured to urgently present a proposal to the Solstickan foundation. In the winter of 1936, Nerman therefore painted an adjusted version of Tummelisa, where the fair-haired girl from HC Andersen's fairy tale was transformed into a boy.

Einar Nerman is represented at, among others, the National Museum and the Moderna Museet in Stockholm.