ART & ARTISTS: 2017-09-24

John Bauer and his wife Ester in Italy in 1908

John Albert Bauer (1882 – 1918) was a Swedish painter and illustrator. His work is concerned with landscape and mythology, but he also composed portraits. He is best known for his illustrations of early editions of Bland tomtar och troll (Among Gnomes and Trolls), an anthology of Swedish folklore and fairy tales.

For more information on John Bauer, and for earlier works, see part 1 also.

This is part 2 of a 7-part post on the works of John Bauer:

1903 "Sagoprins looking into the setting sun"
( Sagoprins tittande in i den nedgående solen )
pencil, watercolour and gouache on paper 15 x 13 cm

1904 "An Old Mountain Troll"
( Ett gammalt bergstroll )

1904 "The Fairy Princess"
oil sketch
( Bauer's wife Ester Ellquist modelling )

1905 "Freya"
( Freja )
oil on canvas 80 x 155 cm

1906 "Spirit of Christmas"
( Julstämning )
India ink and wash heightened with white 32.5 x 22.5 cm

1906 Sketch

1907 "Ester in the cottage"
watercolour

1907 "Into the Wide World"
( Ut i Vida Världen )
study

1907 "Into the Wide World"
( Ut i Vida Världen )

1907 "The Trolls in Toompea await visitors"
Jönköping County Museum, Sweden

1907 '"The Trolls in Domberget expected visiting Strangers"
( Trollen i Domberget vänta främmande )

1907 '"The Trolls in Domberget expected visiting Strangers"
(Trollen i Domberget vänta främmande )
mixed media on paper 9.5 x 24 cm

1907c "Sago"
pencil, ink, watercolour and gouache on paper 7.5 x 18 cm

1907 Among Gnomes and Trolls No.1
(Bland Tomtar Och Troll No.1):

1907 Front cover with illustration from
"Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson

1907 Bland Tomtar och Troll No.1Title Page

1907 "He could ride in any weather"
( Han som kunde rida i alla väder ) by Helena Nyblom

1907 " The boy who grasped the troll for the toboggan"
( Pojken som spände trollet för kälken ) by Harald Östenson

1907 "The Enchanted Forest"
( Den förtrollade skogen ) by Anna Wahlenberg
pencil watercolour heightened with white on paper 3.5 x 13 cm

1907 Among Gnomes and Trolls No.1
"Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain" by Harald Östenson

"Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson

"Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson
"I have the crown"

"Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson
"Princess Daga was followed in the forest"

"Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson

1907 "Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson

1907 "Dag and Daga, and the Flying Troll of Sky Mountain"
by Harald Östenson
"Lord of the Day" Princess Daga watched by Trolls

1908 Among Gnomes and Trolls No.2
(Bland Tomtar Och Troll No.2):

1908 Among Gnomes and Trolls 2
( Bland Tomtar Och Troll 2 )

1908 "The Leather Bag"
( Skinnpåsen ) by Anna Wahlenberg

1908 "The Leather Bag"
( Skinnpåsen ) by Anna Wahlenberg
pencil, ink, watercolour and gouache on paper 20.5 x 18.5 cm

1908 Among Gnomes and Trolls No.2
"The story of the fisherman Sikur and the troll network"
(Sagan om fiskaren Sikur och trollnätet) by Cyrus Granér

1908 "The Swan Maiden"
( Svanhamnen ) by Anna Wahlenberg

1908 "Lappland - The Great Swedish Future Land" (paintings of the Sami People):

1908 Lappland - The Great Swedish Future Land

1908 John Bauer Self-Portrait
watercolour on paper 18 x 19 cm
Jönköping Country Museum, Sweden

Bauer was born and raised in Jönköping. At age sixteen he moved to Stockholm to study at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts. While there he received his first commissions to illustrate stories in books and magazines, and met the artist Ester Ellqvist, whom he married in 1906. He travelled throughout Lappland, Germany and Italy early in his career, and these cultures deeply informed his work. He painted and illustrated in a romantic nationalistic style, in part influenced by the Italian Renaissance and Sami cultures. Most of his works are watercolours or prints in monochrome or muted colours; he also produced oil paintings and frescos. His illustrations and paintings broadened the understanding and appreciation of Swedish folklore, fairy tales and landscape.

When Bauer was 36, he, Ester and their son, Bengt, drowned in a shipwreck on Lake Vättern.

This is part 1 of a 7-part post on the works of John Bauer: