EGRON SELLIF LUNDGREN, Young woman in a blue bodice, Pastel on paper

EGRON SELLIF LUNDGREN Stockholm, 1815 – 1875. Young woman in a blue bodice. Pastel on paper. Signed at the bottom right. Oval view: 59 × 48 cm. Wood and gilded stucco frame from the period. Frame dimensions: 72 X 60 cm. A traveling painter among the most important Swedish watercolorists of the 19th century, Egron Lundgren was trained at the Royal Academy of Stockholm before continuing his studies in Paris with Léon Cogniet. He successively settled in Italy, Spain, and then England, where he received several official commissions, gaining international recognition for his mastery of techniques on paper. This work belongs to the most intimate vein of his production. The young woman depicted, with her gaze lowered in an attitude of silent meditation, is treated with great delicacy. The vaporous modeling of the face, the subtlety of the complexions, and the richness of the treatment of the fabrics testify to the artist's virtuosity in dry techniques and in the art of the female portrait. Due to its finished character, its significant format, and its decorative qualities, this composition is among the most appealing works of the artist currently found on the market.