Per Ekström, also Pehr or Peter (23 February 1844-21 January 1935) was a Swedish landscape painter, know for his atmospheric scenes with sunsets, in barren or deserted places.[1]
His father was a house painter. He took drawing lessons as a child, then studied at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts from 1865 to 1872, but was influenced by French painting rather than the prevailing Düsseldorf School. In 1876, thanks to the support of King Oscar II, he was able to go to Paris, where he lived until 1890. There, he came under the influence of the Barbizon School and Camille Corot. His first exhibit at the Salon was in 1878 and he won a gold medal at the Exposition Universelle (1889).
After returning to Sweden, he lived in Öland, then Stockholm. On the advice of art collector and merchant Pontus Fürstenberg who was a major patron of the arts, he settled in Gothenburg in 1891. He continued, however, to visit Öland every summer and opened a studio in Birger Jarls Bazar, one of Stockholm’s first modern office buildings. As the 1890s progressed, he began to work in a style known as mood impressionism (stämningsimpressionism). His favorite places for painting were Stockholms ström and Jämtland. His home was a meeting place for the local cultural and academic world; including the writer, August Bondeson and the painters, Georg and Hanna Pauli. [2] [3]
Ah, more landscapes. I’m in a rut, it seems. Sadly, I’ve not been able to find the titles of many of these, so I’ve been a little whimsical in my naming of them…
Seriously- what I love is light. Per paints with light. Lots of it.