Coastscape in Bohuslän 1900

Karl Nordström made this landscape of Bohuslän, in Sweden, using crayon on paper. Nordström’s muted palette and stark composition suggest a symbolic rather than literal representation of the Swedish coast. Around the turn of the century, Swedish artists like Nordström turned to the national landscape. He used visual codes to express a collective cultural identity. This imagery resonated with a population undergoing rapid social and economic change. Sweden was morphing from an agrarian to an industrial society, and from a rural to an urban culture. Artists attempted to capture what they saw as an authentic Swedish spirit, rooted in nature and the past. They provided a sense of cultural continuity. To more fully understand Nordström's art, one might look at the history of Swedish nationalism. It's worth considering the institutional and economic support for landscape painting at this time. This artwork reflects a nation grappling with its identity.