King Oscar II »

Anders Zorn

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About The Artwork

King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway (January 21, 1829-December 8, 1907) was born Oscar Frederik. This gentleman ruled Norway from 1872 until 1905 and Sweden from 1872 until his death. It is no wonder King Oscar II had an affinity for the sea, as he entered the navy at the age of eleven. Zorn painted a portrait of King Oscar II seated in a stately chair in 1898 in oil. The newest catalogue raisonne of Zorn's etchings published in 2007 by Sven Lidbeck names the plate for King Oscar II as having been destroyed before 1909. There are two known states of this print. The first state involves 2 - 5 impressions, whereas the second and final state may have been produced in excess of 50 impressions. Of these, 17 are owned by public collections positioned throughout the world (Sweden, United States, Hungary, Norway, France).

About The Artist

At the age of 15 Zorn entered the Royal Academy of Art in Stockholm. At the age of 20 in 1880, his watercolor titled In Mourning launched his career, as it was first included in a student exhibition and later was added to the National Museum's collection in Stockholm. Popular with members of Stockholm society, Zorn received many commissions to paint the portraits of adults and their children. Through such a commission he met his wife Emma Lamm, later Emma Zorn. After four years of study abroad, Zorn's skill increased, enabling his work to wear a bolder appearance. At the age of 29, Zorn was awarded the French Legion of Honor and was asked to paint his self portrait for the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. It is said that his portraits demonstrated his incisive ability to depict the individual character of Zorn's model. His work in etchings commenced in 1882, producing 289 altogether. Zorn admired and collected Rembrandt's etchings. These undoubtedly impacted Zorn's manner of working in this medium.

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