Waldemar Sjölander

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Waldemar Sjölander
Waldemar Sjölander.
Born(1908-01-06)January 6, 1908
Gothenburg, Sweden
DiedMarch 18, 1988(1988-03-18) (aged 80)
Mexico City, Mexico
NationalityMexican
Known forpainting, printmaking, sculpture

Gustav Waldemar Sjölander Johnson[1] (January 6, 1908 – March 18, 1988) was a Swedish painter, printmaker and sculptor, who developed most of his career in Mexico. He immigrated to the country just after World War II, after establishing himself as an artist in his native Sweden. His career included individual exhibitions in venues such as the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico and the Konstakademin in Sweden, with his works held by museums in Mexico and Europe.

Life

Sjölander was born on January 6, 1908, in

Veracruz and other Gulf ports of Mexico various times.[3][4]

His visits to Mexico impressed him and by the end of the 1930s he decided to immigrate to the country, but World War II delayed his plans. During this war, he became an officer in a cavalry regiment along Sweden's border with Finland, studying Spanish from an old grammar book in his free time.[3][4]

Sjölander became one of many fine artists that immigrated to Mexico in the 20th century. After he left his country at the end of the war, he first went to

Juchitán and San Blas for two years, creating more than 200 paintings and many more drawings. He was particularly impressed with the landscapes in Oaxaca, but eventually settled in Mexico City.[3][4]

Sjölander died in Mexico City on March 18, 1988, at the age of 80.[3]

Career

Sjölander began his artistic career in Sweden. He began creating prints, especially lithography in the mid 1940s, and to survive often had to paint cafes and other commercial establishments.[2][3] In 1944, he had an individual exhibition at the Olsen Art Gallery, then at the Modern Art Gallery in 1945 and 1946. These exhibitions made him an established artist in his home country.[3]

After arriving in Mexico,

Sao Paulo Biennale in 1961 and 1972. In 1982 he was elected to the selection committee for the Triennial of Sculpture.[2][3]

Sjölander's works can be found in the collection of the

Gothenburg Museum, the Museo de Arte Moderno, the Palacio de Bellas Artes, the National Museum of Rhodesia and the Casa de las Américas in Cuba.[2][3]

In addition to producing art for which he never accepted the help of a patron, Sjölander also taught at the

Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas (1977-1985). In 1985 he joined the Centro de Investigación y Experimentación Plástica.[3][4]

Sjölander's work was recognized with various distinctions during his lifetime, including Knight's Decoration First Class from his home country of Sweden in 1959, membership in the Order of Saint Michael in France in the 1960s along with membership in the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana. He received the Xipe-Totec award at the First National Sculpture Biennale in 1962 and the first sculpture prize from the Salon de la Plástica Mexicana in 1971. Retrospectives of his work include one at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in 1985, one from the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes in 1991 and at the Museo Dolores Olmedo in 1998.[3][4]

Artistry

Sjölander painted, sculpted and did printmaking during his career, designing over 500 of the tools he used.

monotype.[2] He sculpted three-dimensional works along with reliefs (his specialty) in plaster, bronze and wood, with wood his most expressive medium. He often obtained his materials on his travels in Mexico, such as mahogany from Veracruz.[3][4]

The artist's work, especially his painting, is noted for its use of color. In Sweden his was a member of a group called the "Colorists of Gothenburg" as an art movement in that country, which experimented with colors not before used there. When he arrived to Mexico, nature and the colors common in Mexico were very different from his home country and changes to his art began almost immediately, although in both places nature played a dominant role.[2][3] His earlier work used bolder colors than later work, which became more subtle and delicate.[3] Fernando Gamboa wrote that "His autonomy lies in his color, in the rich hues that never shatter the surface of the painting; the balance and originality of his sculptures reveal a unique resolution of form and style.[4]

A large number of his paintings, reliefs and engraving relate to man and landscape, with only a few portraits such as one of his wife, Aurora, in 1952. His early work was more figurative, showing influence from

Mexican Muralists, in Mexico he became part of the following Generación de la Ruptura. His work gradually became less figurative. By the end of the 1950s and early 1960s, the human figure began to divide and by the 1970s and early 1980s he work was more of an abstract analysis of form with silhouettes.[3][4]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Waldemar Sjölander.

References

  1. ^ Gustav Waldemar Sjölander
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Waldemar Sjolander" (in Spanish). Mexico City: Artes e Historia magazine. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s María Teresa Favela (January 2003). "Waldemar Sjolander El Gran Colorista" (PDF). Addenda (in Spanish). Mexico: CENIDIAP. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  4. ^
    ISBN 968-6258-56-6
    .
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