“Luminous Modernism: Scandinavian Art Comes to America, 1912,” an international loan exhibition of paintings by Edvard Munch, Vilhelm Hammershøi, Anders Zorn and other Scandinavian pioneers of Modernism, opens October 25 at Scandinavia House: The Nordic Center in America.
Running through February 11, the exhibition brings together approximately 50 works by leading late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Century Nordic artists from more than 20 public and private collections in Europe and America.
The final of three exhibitions presented by The American-Scandinavian Foundation in recognition of its centennial, “Luminous Modernism” revisits the landmark ASF-sponsored exhibition of 1912 †a groundbreaking display of contemporary Danish, Norwegian and Swedish painting that gave many in this country, including emerging modern artists, their first introduction to Scandinavian art.
While “Luminous Modernism” features 20 of the same artists and eight of the same works presented in the 1912 exhibition, it has been expanded in scope to encompass all five Nordic countries, including Finland and Iceland, illustrating the richness of artistic expression throughout the region during this period.
Ranging from the visionary landscapes of Munch, Harald Sohlberg and Akseli Gallen-Kallela, to the intimate domestic interiors of Hammershøi and Harriet Backer, to depictions of rural life by Carl Larsson and Lauritz Andersen Ring, the exhibition reveals the varied and original ways Scandinavian artists responded to modernist innovations at home and abroad.
“Luminous Modernism” has been organized by the foundation in collaboration with an international team of scholars headed by Patricia G. Berman, professor of art history at Wellesley College and the University of Oslo. A fully illustrated catalog accompanies the exhibition.
Scandinavia House is at 58 Park Avenue. For information, 212-879-9779 or www.scandinaviahouse.org .
