Eugene Jansson
Jansson (1862-1915) had two subject matters he focused on. Night time scenes of Sweden and naked men. On his death, Jansson’s family seems to have burned a lot of his work to avoid scandal. What remains are some remarkable dark blue paintings of night scenes.
I personally love the painting below. Just looking at it and not reading anything about it, I see the artist standing infront of several panels of a single painting composition. The sense of space is very off. I’m not sure if I’m looking at the floor and wall just below the bottom of the paintings or if that is a a line showing the edge of picture frames. So my mind is bouncing back and forth between one interpretation or another. Also I feel like I could be looking out from an 80th floor penthouse view looking across central park. The space is messed up. I like it. That sense of space being broken while being painted in the darkest shades of blue and the look on Jansson’s face… perfect.
Self Portrait 1901
My Current Take on Jansson: He was very good. Just look at this self portrait 1890s. He painted at least 2 or 3 paintings that I’m blown away by. His male figures are also well painted.
I don’t think he pushed the limits far enough. He was very good but never pushed to have a distinct voice which might not have been what he was after.