Olof Walfrid Nilsson - Mountain in Evening Sun
Normaler Preis 54 504 krOlof Walfrid Nilsson (1868–1956)
Fjäll i aftonsol (“Mountain in Evening Sun”) circa 1933
oil on canvas
signed Olof W. Nilsson and dated 1933?
unframed: 102 x 82 cm (40.2 x 32.3 in)
framed: 122 x 102 cm (48.0 x 40.2 in)
Provenance:
Uppsala Auktionskammare, 8 December 2002, Lot 137, titled “Fjäll i aftonsol 1933” (Mountain in Evening Sun, 1933).
Related work:
Stockholms Auktionsverk, 2 December 1992, Lot 5450, titled “Kebnekaise, fjällmassiv i sol (1934)” – oil on canvas, 65 x 86 cm – sold in the sale “Internationella Moderna Grafik”.
Essay:
This large oil on canvas (102 x 82 cm) captures the majestic stillness of a Lapland mountain landscape bathed in the glow of the evening sun. A sweeping ridge of peaks rises under a sky shifting towards dusk, their slopes washed in rich blue and lilac tones. The warm light of the setting sun brushes the highest summits, while deep shadows settle in the valleys. Although the exact location remains uncertain, the view may have been inspired by the Kebnekaise massif or the iconic Lapporten valley – landscapes Nilsson visited and painted during the early 1930s. The work is faintly signed “Olof W. Nilsson” with an indistinct date, believed to be 1933, and is presented in its original gilded frame.
Nilsson had a lifelong affinity for the northern wilderness, and during the 1920s and 1930s he spent extended periods working in Lappland. His paintings are celebrated for their ability to convey both the grandeur and the quietude of the high mountains, often using a restrained yet luminous palette. Fjäll i aftonsol reflects his talent for capturing the delicate interplay of light and shadow at the day’s end – a time when the Arctic evening transforms the landscape into a scene of rare serenity.
Born in 1868, Nilsson trained in Stockholm before travelling widely, eventually developing a style rooted in close observation yet infused with a lyrical, almost poetic sensibility. His work blends naturalistic detail with an emotional response to the landscape, transforming remote mountain scenes into meditations on light, silence, and space. While firmly grounded in the traditions of Swedish landscape painting, his art also reflects the early 20th-century fascination with Lappland as a symbol of untouched nature and national identity.
Condition Report: The painting retains clear, vibrant colours and was likely restored approximately ten years ago. There is some craquelure, most visible in the sky, as is typical for works of this age. The frame is in good condition with a few earlier repairs.
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