All About Lars Norrman 1915-1979
Lars Norrman (1915-1979) is becoming increasingly popular. His art can be defined by his use of vibrant colours and charming, heavy brushstrokes and clean lines which give his paintings a timeless quality. He often painted nautical scenes, perhaps inspired by his time serving in the merchant navy in his youth. His works include portraits as well as landscapes which are a creative documentation of his travels. Since his death in 1979, little has been written about him, despite his having won a Guggenheim Fellowship in New York in 1955 and having been exhibited all over the world.
Here at Collins & Green we stock vintage and decorative artworks which include many of Norrman's paintings, including watercolours, oils and lithographs.
'Latin American Woman' signed Lars Norrman, 1915-1979. Oil on board in an ornate vintage wood frame with linen insert and gilt trim. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the image above for more information.
Early Beginnings: School and the Merchant Navy
'Boats at Low Tide' signed Lars Norrman, watercolour and gouache on paper with a linen mount under glass and a gilt frame. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the image above for more information.
Lars Norrman was born in Helingsborg, Sweden, in 1915. As the son of a sea captain, Lars Olof Norrman, he was exposed to maritime life and imagery from a young age. He joined the merchant navy at the age of 15 when he left school. He started painting what he could see from the cabin hatch; fellow seamen encouraged him to pursue his talents after seeing the watercolours he had created. Being in the merchant navy also meant that he travelled extensively and continued to do so all his life.
'Woman with Pink Braid' signed Lars Norrman, gouache on paper under glass with a card mount and vintage wooden frame with gilt trim. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the painting above for more information.
At 16 he joined Otte Skölde's painting school in Stockholm. He then studied under Fernand Léger in Paris and exhibited at the Musée National d'Art Moderne in 1946.
The Beginnings of his Artistic Career
'Below the Andes' signed Lars Norrman, gouache on paper under glass with a card mount and gilt frame. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the painting above for more information.
At 22, Norrman went to Greenland where he was inspired by the vast snowy landscapes and isolated living conditions. This trip was followed by his first solo exhibition at the Galerie Moderne in Stockholm in 1936 which received very positive reviews. He then travelled to Africa and returned to Greenland until the outbreak of war in1939. Norrman continued to exhibit throughout the war, at the Galerie Moderne in 1941, and the National Museum 1941-45; Lars' work was seen at national level from very early in his career.
Developing his Skills
A poster of a lithograph print by Lars Norrman, based on his travels to Greenland. Sold in IKEA in the 1970s.
His early work consists of watercolours and sketches produced whilst in the Navy, and oils and gouaches painted on his travels. Norrman then moved on to graphic design and lithograph printing. In 1951 he participated in the National Museum's exhibition Nudita Swedish Graphics which focussed on nudes.
'Nude Woman' signed Lars Norrman, gouache on paper under glass with a card mount and gilt frame. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the painting above for more information.
Many artists at this time produced lithograph prints and graphic designs, as mass-produced posters using their designs could be quite profitable. By the 1970s Norrman began creating posters for interiors company IKEA.
Style
'Desert Women' signed Lars Norrman, oil on board in a dark wood frame with gilt trim. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the image above for more information.
Norrman's works have a distinctive style summarised by his use of vibrant colours and definite brushstrokes with clean lines. There is a certain playfulness about his paintings which are somewhat illustrative and child-like. The figures always appear to look away from the canvas, deepening the scale of the scene.
Norrman often chose gouache as it produces bright, opaque colours without the difficulty of waiting for oil paints to dry. This would have been especially important when hen was travelling and wanted to capture a scene in a short amount of time and many of his works retain a sketch-like quality
A Globetrotter
'In the Bolivian Sun' signed Lars Norrman, watercolour on paper under glass with a card mount and vintage gilt frame. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the image above for more information.
So where else did Norrman visit on his self-study art trips? We have mentioned the trips to Greenland and Africa in his twenties. A year after his graphic exhibition in 1951 he exhibited at an important graphic design exhibition in the USA. Here, he gained international recognition and was awarded a Fellowship at the Guggenheim in New York in 1955.
He also exhibited in Paris throughout his career, returning to the place he had studied in his early twenties. In the 1960s, he travelled to Japan and learnt the traditional techniques of woodblock printing and lithography, skills which he continued to develop. He was inspired by specific techniques such as the concept of 'ma'. known as 'empty space' which creates balance in an artwork. This, as well as asymmetry and the use of ink, is seen in his later work, although these qualities were already present to some degree in the paintings which pre-date his travels to Japan.
Final Thoughts
'Pink Dress' signed Lars Norrman, gouache on paper under glass with a brown card mount and vintage gilt frame. Available at Collins & Green Art, click the painting above for more information.
Norrman died in August 1979 in St. Johannes Parish, Sweden. His paintings remain modern and relevant, despite his career beginning some 90 years ago. We love his work here at the gallery and always try to have some in stock and look forward to discovering more.
Written by Eloise Saggers, Collins & Green Art
