Alf Munthe
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a Swedish Grace ceiling lamp, executed by H. Person, Sweden 1920s.
Brass, richly engraved decoration of stylized birds and tree branches, rim with openwork decor, four light points, engraved signature ALF MUNTHE DELIN and H. PERSON FECIT. Diameter 57 cm.
Wear, patina, electrical function not guaranteed. Possibly originally part of a larger fixture/chandelier.
Literature
Erik Wettergren, "L’art Décoratif Moderne en Suède", Malmö Museum 1925, compare the decoration on the canopy illustrated p. 85.
Gregor Paulsson (ed.), "Svenska Slöjdföreningens Tidskrift", own publishing 1927, compare the decoration on the upholstery illustrated p. 29.
More information
Alf Munthe was primarily active as a painter and textile artist, gaining attention at a young age. During his first study trip to Paris in 1920, Munthe began to take an interest in textile art. In 1923, he was commissioned by architect Gunnar Asplund to create the textile decorations for the Skandia cinema in Stockholm.
For the Swedish pavilion at the 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris, Munthe created the monumental canopy "Folkvisans Apollo" which hung in the ceiling of the reception hall, depicting a male figure with a musical instrument in hand standing on a platform with trees behind and flying birds around. This motif choice of stylized birds and trees is also found in the fabric composed by Munthe, which Carl Malmsten used to upholster a chair that was later displayed at the Swedish industrial art exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago in 1927. The following year, Nationalmuseum in Stockholm acquired a lantern with a brass stand and embroidered decor designed by Munthe (Inventory number NMK 98/1928).
The present brass ceiling lamp is a particularly interesting newly discovered piece in Alf Munthe's versatile oeuvre, executed by the smith H. Person with a motif characteristic of the artist. In many ways, it is a prime example of Swedish Grace.