Johan Krouthén
Encyclopedia
Johan Krouthén was a Swedish artist. He broke away from the traditions of the Swedish Academy, turning to Realism
and Idealism
. Immediately after his studies, he spent a few months in Paris and in Denmark where he associated with the Skagen Painters. Back in Sweden he painted pictures of gardens and portraits of local people.
. The Krouthén family, from Norrköping
, had worked for generations as pewterers.
When he was 14, Krouthén left school and started an apprenticeship with Svante Leonard Rydholm, a photographer and artist, where he learnt the basic skills of both painting and photography. In 1875, at the age 16, he joined the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts
in Stockholm where he studied drawing, portrait painting and landscaping. In addition to his education at the Academy, he was also taught by Swedish artist Edvard Perseus who was critical of the Academy and encouraged his students to paint from nature.
and Anders Zorn
who also studied at the Art Academy. In the autumn of 1881, when the Academy president, Georg von Rosen
, warned Zorn that he was not following the academy's prescribed curriculum, he promptly replied that he would leave. Krouthén, who happened to come into the president's office at the time, also said he would leave.
In 1881, Krouthén spent a short period in Paris, a popular destination for Swedish artists in the 1880s, but he soon returned to Sweden where he painted in Scania
and in Bohuslän
with its rocky landscapes. His painting of a desolate landscape with a barefoot boy on a dirt track was exhibited in Stockholm in 1883, arousing considerable attention as a result of its realistic, unembellished look.
In the summer of 1883, he joined Oscar Björck at Skagen
in the north of Jutland
, where there was a small colony of artists from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. He stayed there from May until at least October. The Skagen Painters
advocated artistic Naturalism. Instead of groups of weathered fishermen, Krouthén painted landscapes of the flat desolate Grenen beaches.
After Skagen, Krouthén returned to Linköping and continued to paint landscapes. In 1884, he met the then 18-year-old Hulda Ottosson at Linköping Castle
where she was in a beauty contest. Krouthén is said to have been enthralled by her beauty and she became his first model. They married in 1886 but their first child died at birth the same year. In 1891, Hulda gave birth to twins but died during the delivery. It was not easy to make a living from art in Linköping but Krouthén ensured an income by organizing a number of art lotteries with his paintings as prizes as well as by painting private gardens in the area.
The painting Spring in the garden (1886) depicts Linkøping's Biskopträdgården. It is based on a photograph Krouthén took of the scene. The painting originally included both a man and a woman but the man was painted over and a quince bush was added. When exhibited at the Salon in Paris in 1889, the painting earned Krouthén a gold medal. Several other Swedish artists received awards at the Salon, which represented a breakthrough for the Impessionists
. A comparison between the photograph and the finished painting shows that Krouthén abandoned Realism
in favour of Idealism
. He was not content with reality without adding light and shade. When interviewed, Krouthén explained that a painter must skillfully and accurately paint nature at its best.
During the 1880s he began painting portraits and interiors. Just as in his garden paintings, his interiors often include completely passive figures. One of the most famous, is a painting showing librarian Segersteen, in his home. Erik Hjalmar Segersteen was one of Krouthén patrons and the painting shows him surrounded by his art collection, including works by Krouthén.
In 1891, after his wife Hulda died during childbirth, Krouthén and his children moved to the Gottfridsberg district of Linköbing. 1902 gifte han sig med Clara Söderlund. In 1902 he married Clara Söderlund. Under 1890-talet blev han allt mer känd och han fick måla allt mer på beställning, till exempel porträtt av kända linköpingsbor. During the 1890s he became increasingly well-known, receiving many painting assignments, including portraits of famous Linköpingers. Han fick också göra målningar till kyrkor, bland annat altartavlan i Kärna kyrka , Vånga kyrka och Sankt Larskyrkan i Linköping . He was also assigned to do paintings for churches, including altarpieces for Kärna Church, Vånga Church and St. Laurence Church in Linköping.
Krouthén's later career was rather uninteresting from an artistic point of view with paintings of red wooden cottages and flowering trees. In 1909, he moved to Stockholm with his family, acquiring a studio in Valhallavägen
. He did exhibit very much in Stockholm, his main clientele continuing to be from the Linkoping area. He was not particularly interested in contemporary art, explaining: "Art and culture have deteriorated tremendously. Modern art is neither art or nor modern. All the isms people talk about are pretty pointless if they are no more than an imitation of traditional art with a lower level of culture."
He often repainted the same scenes while his efforts to support his family made him turn to what his clients wanted. The loss of his beautiful wife Hulda is also said to have affected his painting in the years after her death.
Krouthén often returned to Linköping. For the 80th anniversary of the Stora Hotel in 1932, he was working on a number of large paintings. A week before Christmas, he suffered a stroke and was found dead in his hotel room.
Realism (visual arts)
Realism in the visual arts is a style that depicts the actuality of what the eyes can see. The term is used in different senses in art history; it may mean the same as illusionism, the representation of subjects with visual mimesis or verisimilitude, or may mean an emphasis on the actuality of...
and Idealism
Idealism
In philosophy, idealism is the family of views which assert that reality, or reality as we can know it, is fundamentally mental, mentally constructed, or otherwise immaterial. Epistemologically, idealism manifests as a skepticism about the possibility of knowing any mind-independent thing...
. Immediately after his studies, he spent a few months in Paris and in Denmark where he associated with the Skagen Painters. Back in Sweden he painted pictures of gardens and portraits of local people.
Early life
Krouthén, the son of Conrad Krouthén, a merchant, and Hilda Atkins, was born in LinköpingLinköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
. The Krouthén family, from Norrköping
Norrköping
Norrköping is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County. The city has a population of 87,247 inhabitants in 2010, out of a municipal total of 130,050, making it Sweden's tenth largest city and eighth largest...
, had worked for generations as pewterers.
When he was 14, Krouthén left school and started an apprenticeship with Svante Leonard Rydholm, a photographer and artist, where he learnt the basic skills of both painting and photography. In 1875, at the age 16, he joined the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts
Royal Swedish Academy of Arts
The Royal Swedish Academy of Arts or Kungl. Akademien för de fria konsterna, founded in 1773 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden...
in Stockholm where he studied drawing, portrait painting and landscaping. In addition to his education at the Academy, he was also taught by Swedish artist Edvard Perseus who was critical of the Academy and encouraged his students to paint from nature.
Career
Krouthén became acquainted with Oscar BjörckOscar Björck
Oscar Gustaf Björck was a Swedish painter and a professor at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts.Born in Stockholm, from 1877 to 1882, Björck was a student of Edvard Perséus at the Academy where his paintings included Loke fängslas af asarne , Gustaf Vasa inför kung Hans and Den förlorade sonens...
and Anders Zorn
Anders Zorn
Anders Leonard Zorn was one of Sweden’s foremost artists who obtained international success as a painter, sculptor and printmaker in etching.-Biography:...
who also studied at the Art Academy. In the autumn of 1881, when the Academy president, Georg von Rosen
Georg von Rosen
Georg von Rosen , was a Swedish painter, known for his treatment of subjects from Swedish history and Norse mythology...
, warned Zorn that he was not following the academy's prescribed curriculum, he promptly replied that he would leave. Krouthén, who happened to come into the president's office at the time, also said he would leave.
In 1881, Krouthén spent a short period in Paris, a popular destination for Swedish artists in the 1880s, but he soon returned to Sweden where he painted in Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
and in Bohuslän
Bohuslän
' is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the west, and the county of Østfold in Norway to the north...
with its rocky landscapes. His painting of a desolate landscape with a barefoot boy on a dirt track was exhibited in Stockholm in 1883, arousing considerable attention as a result of its realistic, unembellished look.
In the summer of 1883, he joined Oscar Björck at Skagen
Skagen
Skagen is a projection of land and a town, with a population of 8,515 , in Region Nordjylland on the northernmost tip of Vendsyssel-Thy, a part of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark...
in the north of Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
, where there was a small colony of artists from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. He stayed there from May until at least October. The Skagen Painters
Skagen Painters
The Skagen Painters were a group of Scandinavian artists who gathered in the area of Skagen, the northernmost part of Denmark, from the late 1870s until the turn of the century...
advocated artistic Naturalism. Instead of groups of weathered fishermen, Krouthén painted landscapes of the flat desolate Grenen beaches.
After Skagen, Krouthén returned to Linköping and continued to paint landscapes. In 1884, he met the then 18-year-old Hulda Ottosson at Linköping Castle
Linköping Castle
Linköping Castle is situated in Linköping, the province of Östergötland, Sweden. It stands opposite to the cathedral....
where she was in a beauty contest. Krouthén is said to have been enthralled by her beauty and she became his first model. They married in 1886 but their first child died at birth the same year. In 1891, Hulda gave birth to twins but died during the delivery. It was not easy to make a living from art in Linköping but Krouthén ensured an income by organizing a number of art lotteries with his paintings as prizes as well as by painting private gardens in the area.
The painting Spring in the garden (1886) depicts Linkøping's Biskopträdgården. It is based on a photograph Krouthén took of the scene. The painting originally included both a man and a woman but the man was painted over and a quince bush was added. When exhibited at the Salon in Paris in 1889, the painting earned Krouthén a gold medal. Several other Swedish artists received awards at the Salon, which represented a breakthrough for the Impessionists
Impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
. A comparison between the photograph and the finished painting shows that Krouthén abandoned Realism
Realism (visual arts)
Realism in the visual arts is a style that depicts the actuality of what the eyes can see. The term is used in different senses in art history; it may mean the same as illusionism, the representation of subjects with visual mimesis or verisimilitude, or may mean an emphasis on the actuality of...
in favour of Idealism
Idealism
In philosophy, idealism is the family of views which assert that reality, or reality as we can know it, is fundamentally mental, mentally constructed, or otherwise immaterial. Epistemologically, idealism manifests as a skepticism about the possibility of knowing any mind-independent thing...
. He was not content with reality without adding light and shade. When interviewed, Krouthén explained that a painter must skillfully and accurately paint nature at its best.
During the 1880s he began painting portraits and interiors. Just as in his garden paintings, his interiors often include completely passive figures. One of the most famous, is a painting showing librarian Segersteen, in his home. Erik Hjalmar Segersteen was one of Krouthén patrons and the painting shows him surrounded by his art collection, including works by Krouthén.
In 1891, after his wife Hulda died during childbirth, Krouthén and his children moved to the Gottfridsberg district of Linköbing. 1902 gifte han sig med Clara Söderlund. In 1902 he married Clara Söderlund. Under 1890-talet blev han allt mer känd och han fick måla allt mer på beställning, till exempel porträtt av kända linköpingsbor. During the 1890s he became increasingly well-known, receiving many painting assignments, including portraits of famous Linköpingers. Han fick också göra målningar till kyrkor, bland annat altartavlan i Kärna kyrka , Vånga kyrka och Sankt Larskyrkan i Linköping . He was also assigned to do paintings for churches, including altarpieces for Kärna Church, Vånga Church and St. Laurence Church in Linköping.
Krouthén's later career was rather uninteresting from an artistic point of view with paintings of red wooden cottages and flowering trees. In 1909, he moved to Stockholm with his family, acquiring a studio in Valhallavägen
Valhallavägen
Valhallavägen is a major street in Stockholm's Östermalm district. The street is 3,532 meters long, and the name comes from the Viking mythology of Valhalla....
. He did exhibit very much in Stockholm, his main clientele continuing to be from the Linkoping area. He was not particularly interested in contemporary art, explaining: "Art and culture have deteriorated tremendously. Modern art is neither art or nor modern. All the isms people talk about are pretty pointless if they are no more than an imitation of traditional art with a lower level of culture."
He often repainted the same scenes while his efforts to support his family made him turn to what his clients wanted. The loss of his beautiful wife Hulda is also said to have affected his painting in the years after her death.
Krouthén often returned to Linköping. For the 80th anniversary of the Stora Hotel in 1932, he was working on a number of large paintings. A week before Christmas, he suffered a stroke and was found dead in his hotel room.