19th Century European Art

Known best as a writer, social critic, and playwright, August Strindberg was also a prominent Swedish painter. Strindberg used his art as a centering tool, an escape from his tumultuous personal and political life. The upcoming fine art auction offered by Sotheby’s will highlight one of his Impressionist works, titled Översvämning Vid Donau (Flood on the Danube). Using only a palette knife to create his impressions, Strindberg painted the landscape of Austria and the Danube river. His approach to the work was almost nonchalant, as quoted by Sotheby’s: “I am governed by a vague desire. What I have in mind is the interior of a shadowy forest, through which one can see the sea at sunset.” The style of the painting has been compared to Gustave Courbet’s work, which also features in the sale. Courbet’s La Mer Orageuse shows a thickly-painted and stormy sea below equally turbulent skies. It belongs to the artist’s series of “seascapes,” which pushed him and future artists to more realistic depictions of nature. 

French painter William Bouguereau’s Ora Pro Nobis will be available as well. A lifelike, symbolic portrait of the Virgin Mary, this painting shows traces of inspiration from Bouguereau’s travels and studies in Italy. He was notoriously technical and academic, which led both to his creation of realistic paintings and his exclusion of the rising Impressionists. This auction will sample from traditional artworks like Bouguereau’s as well as from the newer movements that sprang up in 19th-century Europe. In response to the period’s industrialization, artists such as Carl Larsson embraced the Arts and Crafts Movement as a simpler way of life. Larsson’s Verkstaden (The Workshop) reflects his brightly-colored and light-filled home, a common theme in his paintings. This piece is sourced from the collection of investor J.E. Safra. 

Several works from Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot will be presented, as well as pieces from Jules Breton, Vilhelm Hammershøi, and Jean Béraud. View the full selection of fine art and register to bid by visiting  Sotheby’s.