Peter David Edstrom
Encyclopedia
Peter David Edstrom (March 27, 1873 – August 12, 1938) was an American sculptor.
, Jönköping County
, Sweden
. In 1880, he immigrated to the United States with his parents, John Peter Edstrom and Charlotte Gustavson Edstrom. Edstrom lived in Ottumwa, Iowa
from 1882 to 1894, which he embraced as his hometown and where he became aware of his artistic skills. (Des Moines Register; May 20, 2007). He returned to Sweden
after a hobo's journey started in a freight train car on July 29, 1894 and ended (after a wage earner's trip across the Atlantic) in Stockholm
where he supported himself during his studies at the Stockholm's Royal Institute of Technology
and Royal Swedish Academy of Arts
.
, he created the sculptures Caliban (1900), Sphinx (1900), Lucifer (1902), The Cry of Poverty (1903), Despair (1904), and Pride (1904). (American National Biography). Edstrom also spent time in Paris
, and became a member of the Gertrude Stein
circle, appeared in some of Stein's word portraits, and sculpted the likeness of Harriet Lane Levy
(the friend who brought Alice B. Toklas
to Paris
in 1907).
Edstrom returned to the United States in 1915. In about 1918, he designed one of his main achievements. The Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Ottumwa, featuring four reliefs on a shaft topped with a large eagle. Around 1920, he located in Los Angeles
, where he was one of the organizers of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
. (McGurrin, 1964), (DMRegister, 2007)
In 1937, his autobiography, Testament of Caliban, was published, a biography which Rupert Hughes
in his forward to the book "aver[ed]" Edstrom's self-story to be "garrulous and preposterous in its account of a man of huge appetites and colossal conceptions." (Kellner, 1988, p. 183). Edstrom died in Los Angeles, after two marriages: "one to the daughter of a Swedish official, who wore men's attire"; and another to Cora Downer, who Gertrude Stein
described as the bride of "the fat Swedish sculptor who married the head of the Christian Science Church in Paris and destroyed her." (Ibid.)
Background
Edstrom was an immigrant from VetlandaVetlanda
Vetlanda is a locality and the seat of Vetlanda Municipality, Jönköping County, Sweden with 12,691 inhabitants in 2005.-History:Vetlanda was still nothing more than a village for several centuries. With the 1840s population boom in Småland, and the industrial revolution winning grounds in Sweden,...
, Jönköping County
Jönköping County
Jönköping County is a county or län in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The capital is Jönköping.- Provinces :...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. In 1880, he immigrated to the United States with his parents, John Peter Edstrom and Charlotte Gustavson Edstrom. Edstrom lived in Ottumwa, Iowa
Ottumwa, Iowa
Ottumwa is a city in and the county seat of Wapello County, Iowa, United States. The population was 24,998 at the 2000 census. It is located in the southeastern part of Iowa, and the city is split into northern and southern halves by the Des Moines River....
from 1882 to 1894, which he embraced as his hometown and where he became aware of his artistic skills. (Des Moines Register; May 20, 2007). He returned to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
after a hobo's journey started in a freight train car on July 29, 1894 and ended (after a wage earner's trip across the Atlantic) in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
where he supported himself during his studies at the Stockholm's Royal Institute of Technology
Royal Institute of Technology
The Royal Institute of Technology is a university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH was founded in 1827 as Sweden's first polytechnic and is one of Scandinavia's largest institutions of higher education in technology. KTH accounts for one-third of Sweden’s technical research and engineering education...
and 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...
.
Career
In 1900, Edstrom moved to Florence where he attended the Academia of Fine Arts. In FlorenceFlorence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, he created the sculptures Caliban (1900), Sphinx (1900), Lucifer (1902), The Cry of Poverty (1903), Despair (1904), and Pride (1904). (American National Biography). Edstrom also spent time in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and became a member of the Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
circle, appeared in some of Stein's word portraits, and sculpted the likeness of Harriet Lane Levy
Harriet Lane Levy
Harriet Lane Levy is a California writer best known for her memoir, 920 O’Farrell Street. Levy was also an avid art collector, a girlhood friend of Alice B. Toklas, and an acquaintance of Gertrude Stein. She was born into an upper-middle-class Jewish family and raised in San Francisco...
(the friend who brought Alice B. Toklas
Alice B. Toklas
Alice B. Toklas was an American-born member of the Parisian avant-garde of the early 20th century.-Early life, relationship with Gertrude Stein:...
to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1907).
Edstrom returned to the United States in 1915. In about 1918, he designed one of his main achievements. The Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Ottumwa, featuring four reliefs on a shaft topped with a large eagle. Around 1920, he located in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, where he was one of the organizers of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
. (McGurrin, 1964), (DMRegister, 2007)
In 1937, his autobiography, Testament of Caliban, was published, a biography which Rupert Hughes
Rupert Hughes
Rupert Hughes was an American historian, novelist, film director and composer based in Hollywood. Hughes was born in Lancaster, Missouri. His parents were Felix Turner Hughes and Jean Amelia Summerlin, who were married in 1865. His brother Howard R. Hughes, Sr., co-founded the Hughes Tool Company....
in his forward to the book "aver[ed]" Edstrom's self-story to be "garrulous and preposterous in its account of a man of huge appetites and colossal conceptions." (Kellner, 1988, p. 183). Edstrom died in Los Angeles, after two marriages: "one to the daughter of a Swedish official, who wore men's attire"; and another to Cora Downer, who Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
described as the bride of "the fat Swedish sculptor who married the head of the Christian Science Church in Paris and destroyed her." (Ibid.)
Secondary sources
- Brigham, Gertrude Richardson, The Story of David Edstrom (referenced in Who's Who Among North American Authors, Golden Syndicate Pub. Co., Los Angeles, 1921) Google Books
- Hildebrand, Carver Edstrom. David Edstrom, Swedish American Sculptor (Swedish American Genealogist, 10, 1: 17-29. March, 1990)
- Kellner, Bruce, ed. A Gertrude Stein Companion: Content with the Example (New York, Westport, Connecticut, London: Greenwood Press, 1988) ISBN 0313250782.
- Lundén, Rolf, The Rise and Fall of a Swedish-American Sculptor: The Case of David Edström (The Swedish-American Historical Quarterly 54 (3) July 2003: 145-63)
- Swanson, Mary Towley, A Tangled Web: Swedish Immigrant Artists Patronage Systems, 1880-1940 (St. Thomas University 2004) Chapter 2 (pp. 11-12); Chapter 4 (pp. 8, 9, 14, 21 n.27)
External links
- Papers of David Edstrom (University of Iowa).
- Oral History Transcript; Smithsonian Archives of American Art Interview with Buckley MacGurrin (June 20, 1964).
- Brown University (biographical summary and images of four representative sculptures).
- [this guy has nothing to do with http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler]