Anders Zorn: Sweden's Master Painter

Has the history of this painter and tells you about his color theory. Lovely hardcover book.

Zorn was a great talent, a magnificent painter in watercolors, the most difficult medium. This volume, published as a catalogue for an exhibition of his work, first in San Francisco, next this winter (2014) in NYC at the National Academy of Design. A special feature of this rather large and heavy volume is that four different art "enthusiasts" have authored four different texts. In one of them the text is extremely well coordinated with the reproductions of the work. Zorn's portrait of Isabella Stewart Gardner (according to my memory, based on the original in Boston) is a truly great painting, unfortunately the reproduction in my copy of this book is terrible, probably due to the "enhancement" built into digital cameras. While Zorn was a master at portrait likenesses and his earliest watercolor ones are wonderful, he eventually became preoccupied with the great financial opportunities that America's wealthy individuals presented. Around age 25 he started using oils. Tragically he lost his focus. The oil portraits, while good for likenesses (it must be assumed from context clues) probably are terrible paintings. I write "probably" because I will not see them until they are at New york's N.A.D. It is through these "bad" portraits that the forthcoming exhibition and this book are extremely useful guides of what not to do... especially to America's current generation of revivaled Realists... Don't make Zorn's mistake. Don't sell out. Don't go for the money. Stay true to yourself. Stay true to art. Zorn was also a superb etcher. Having seen the lessened exhibition at N.A.D. I add that the oil portraits were weak as feared, no comparison to Sargent, as erroneously stated by another.

I ordered this book seven months ago and it was well worth the wait. This is a beautifully produced volume. All the ingredients are there - sturdy binding, heavy pages, gorgeous dust jacket and most importantly, the image resolution is perfect. Up until now there has been very little available on this noted Swedish artist. Earlier this year another volume by Oliver Tostmann, "A European Artist Seduces America" was released. This is a worthwhile work as well but not nearly as thorough as Johan Cederlund's new book. "Sweden's Master Painter" contains a well-rounded and thoughtful selection of Zorn's paintings & etchings, with a heavy emphasis on his portraiture work. The landscapes are amazing and Zorn is particularly adept at capturing the qualities in any given body of water. His portraits will remind one of Sargent's style and his subjects were generally of that same social strata. The text is very informative but, thankfully, does not monopolize the overall content of the book. This book was designed to accompany an exhibit of Zorn's work at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. By chance, I am fortunate to live within driving distance of this amazing museum. For anyone who hasn't been, this venue is a must see. The permanent collection is quite impressive and coupled with this current exhibit affords a rare opportunity indeed. The museum is located on a promontory overlooking the Pacific Ocean, and the surrounding area and museum grounds are absolutely breathtaking. This is a must have book for any one who appreciates the fine arts. I wouldn't pass up Tostmann's book either. Both are very reasonably priced and will not disappoint. If budget or space is an issue get this title. Again, it is a much more extensive work and, wisely, hardbound. It should provide years of enjoyable viewing.

Very good quality

This catalogue accompanies the exhibition at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco from November 2013 to February 2014 and then at the National Academy Museum in New York from February to May 2014. Although represented in most of our major museums, Zorn has not been particularly well known in this country, even though he was as sought-after and successful here as any of his competitors in the Gilded Age, including John Singer Sargent and Giovanni Boldini. But now, within the space of a year, we have had two major presentations of his work accompanied by two very good catalogues, and we are fortunate that the exhibitions/books complement each other so well. The first, at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston in early 2013 (see the reviews on this site) focussed on the deep-pocketed patronage of Mrs. Gardner and her extensive social circle, which gave an immediate impetus to Zorn's career from the moment he first set foot on American soil in 1893 and proved invaluable to the advancement of his career for the rest of his life. The relatively narrow concentration of that catalogue allowed it to present a good deal of interesting material of a biographical and social nature, such as contemporary photographs of his models, of other figures involved and of the interiors in which Zorn's paintings were hung and a good (in fact, the first published) selection of Zorn's correspondence with Mrs. Gardner. There is much less of that in this San Francisco (SF) volume, which, on the other hand, is not circumscribed by its attention to the artist's Boston connections and so is more comprehensive in its reach. It includes, for example, more of the society portraits for which he was so highly sought (and highly compensated) and more of the etchings for which he was less well known but at which he was apparently equally prodigious. These are discussed in a special essay by James A. Ganz, who is Curator of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts in the San Francisco museums, and who recently curated their wonderful "Rembrandt's Century" exhibition and wrote the accompanying catalogue (see the review). Dr. Ganz's essay is the only one in the SF volume which concerns itself much with aesthetic and technical matters. The other three essays are more biographical or broadly comparative: Johan Cederlund, Director of the Zorn Collections in Sweden, who curated the exhibition, writes a general life-and-works introduction; and there is an essay on Zorn in America and one on the artist in his Nordic context, both by prominent Swedish scholars--these are all completely authoritative (and very smoothly translated from the Swedish) but not very searching in their artistic analysis. In that respect, the Gardner volume does a better job: the essays are by and large more analytical, and each catalogue item receives signed work-specific commentary from one of the exhibition's curators. The SF volume contains more catalogue entries, and it is also larger in size, so that the reproductions--of which there are eighty-five in full color and in full-page or double-page format--are also larger. (The Gardner has more, and possibly more pertinently chosen, supportive illustrations.) As far as clarity and color of the reproductions go, I think it's a toss-up: the SF portraits seem to pick up more highlights and the silky sheen of fabrics, but the color in the Gardner's landscapes and bathing scenes is truer, and the images seem generally a bit sharper. The Gardner has a better selected bibliography; the SF a more detailed chronology. A previous reviewer advised those who can have only one of these catalogues to go for the SF, but for me the Gardner has a slight edge--not by much--and fortunately it's not a contest. Best of all, of course, would be to have both; it's not as if there were already too much about Anders Zorn in English. If there is more to come, it will be a very fortuitous upshot of these two back-to-back exhibitions and catalogues, which have allowed him to (re-)emerge from an undeserved obscurity and to be recognized as the major artist he is, effortlessly the peer of his better known and more acclaimed colleagues. In any case, we should have more Zorn if only because--to repeat the blunt words of one of his fellow pupils at the Stockholm Art Academy--"It is so damned good" (11).

I've wanted to find a definitive overview on Zorn. This book was just that. Engaging articles from each of the authors. Taken together, they presented the most important aspects of Zorn's work. Well illustrated with crisp, clear reproductions of Zorn's paintings and those of other artists who influenced him, as well as the work of artists he influenced. I recommend it.

Maybe the difference between loving this book and just liking it is that I bought it because I had seen the recent Zorn exhibition for which this book is the companion. Having been aware of Zorn as a master painter for many years, I have found this volume an excellent reminder of the exhibition, especially several of the portraits which made very powerful impacts. More importantly, his watercolors are practically astounding in their crispness and complexity. They were well reproduced so as to keep much of the impact of the originals despite the sizes being, of necessity, so reduced from the originals. This is a very fine introduction to a deservedly top ranked painter who is not so commonly known. I will order this book as a gift for an art-loving friend.

Nice reproductions and written history of Zorn's career. I will treasure this book.

Libro adquirido para hacer un regalo. El destinatario disfruta con una obra de consulta, excelentemente presentada.

Sans doute le plus beau livre sur ZORN en ce moment à la vente grande qualité d'impression , nombreuses toiles , ce livre est un grand format , et tres bien illustré tres belle qualité , les photos des œuvres de Zorn y sont nombreuses et grandes . je ne comprendrai jamais ces mauvais commentaires ou le client juge le colis arrivé en retard ou endommagé ...et qui ne jugent pas l’œuvre , ce manque de discernement est affligeant . bref superbe livre ! Achetez !

This large volume was the companion ‘catalogue’ to an exhibition of Anders Zorn’s works. While it is not exhaustive in its presentation of his art it does provide a very nice sampling from this amazing, somewhat under-recognized, Swedish artist. Zorn was a contemporary of the more well known American painter Sargeant and they apparently shared similar techniques and a bit of professional rivalry. Zorn is noted for the quality of ‘light’ in his paintings which have an ‘impressionist’ aspect while also presenting meticulous detail reminiscent of the Pre Raphaelite movement. He was equally adept in the mediums of watercolour, oil painting, and etching - all of which are displayed to good advantage within this book - including a few small bronze sculptures. This is a beautifully produced book with excellent quality reproductions and much informative text. I only wish it was twice the size so that it included more of this master’s works. This is a great introduction to this amazing artist - highly recommended!

素晴らしい技術で葯９９点の油彩画、エッチング１９点描かれている。 突き詰めた作品から、印象派風の作品まで人物・群像図・婦人・風景等 様々なジャンルの絵を 作品化している。エッチングは、鋭いストロークで対象を見事に捉えている。 個人的には、油彩画では、エルンスト・ジョセフソン サマーバケーション ムーシュ・モーリ セント・アイヴスの魚市場（この作品は構成が優れている) ４作品が素晴らしい作品と思う。

Imágenes extraordinarias.