Collection
Scandinavian Vintage Paintings
Scandinavian vintage paintings are art that sits naturally alongside Danish and Swedish furniture – a calm palette, strong composition, the light of the North. The collection includes works from the 1950s–90s by artists from Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. Other art is in our vintage paintings category.
Art for the home
In post-war Scandinavia, art was part of the programme for the modern home: alongside good furniture and lamps, it was meant to have an original painting or print on the wall, not a reproduction. Galleries, artists’ associations and department stores sold work by contemporary artists at affordable prices, and printmaking – lithography, screen printing, etching – allowed works to be issued in editions. Hence the great variety of Scandinavian works from the 1960s–80s now coming onto the market.
What unites them is a feel for colour and light: muted, cool tones, strong contrasts, landscape and abstraction treated with similar discipline.
Artists from Sweden and Denmark
More than three quarters of the works in this collection come from Sweden. The most widely represented artists are Frideborg Bryth, Lennart Lilja, Paul Holsby, Margareta Treutiger, Åke Holm and Hardy Strid; from Denmark, Roald Ditmer and Poul Esting. Most are works on paper, some are paintings on canvas.
Signature and provenance
The signature is usually in the lower corner of the work, and the back often bears a gallery, framer’s or exhibition label. These traces help establish where the work was sold and shown. The dimensions of the work and frame are in the Dimensions tab.
Framing and display
Works on paper are best framed behind UV-filtering glass with an acid-free mount. Hang a painting or print so that its centre is at around 150 cm, or 20–30 cm above a sofa or chest of drawers. Smaller works look good hung as a group, with frames in a single rhythm.
