Freja 1905

John Bauer painted Freja in oil, and right away what hits you is this real sense of myth, a dreamlike quality that has a lot to do with how he builds up the image. There's this ghostly palette with yellow hair, that is almost like a halo. The brushwork is so subtle, like whispers on the canvas, you can hardly see the individual marks. It's as if the whole scene is emerging from a mist. Look closely at the way the hair falls; each strand seems to have its own delicate life, contributing to this feeling of otherworldly beauty. Bauer seems to pull from artists like Puvis de Chavannes, who was also painting these dreamy, allegorical scenes around the same time. But Bauer adds a Nordic twist, a kind of quiet melancholy. In the end, this painting isn't just a picture; it's an invitation to get lost in a moment of reflection.