Carl Christoffer Gjörwell – a Neoclassicist Abroad
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Carl Christoffer Gjörwell – A Neoclassicist Abroad Wolfgang Nittnaus Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Stockholm Volumes 24–25 Foreword Dr. Susanna Pettersson Director General Associate Professor Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, (An Unpublished Drawing on Panel by Salvator (In the Breach of Decorum: Painting between is published with generous support from the Rosa Depicting a Landscape with a Philosopher Altar and Gallery, Fig. 9, p. 163). Friends of the Nationalmuseum. and Astrological Symbols, Fig. 6, p. 22). © Wikimedia Commons/ CC BY 2.0 © The Capitoline Museums, Rome. Archivio (In the Breach of Decorum: Painting between Nationalmuseum collaborates with Svenska Fotografico dei Musei Capitolini, Roma, Sovrinten- Altar and Gallery, Fig. 13, p. 167). Dagbladet, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, denza Capitolina ai Beni Culturali. © The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Grand Hôtel Stockholm, The Wineagency and (A Drawing for Pietro da Cortona’s Rape of the Sarasota. Bequest of John Ringling, 1936. Nationalmusei Vänner. Sabine Women, Fig. 2, p. 28). (In the Breach of Decorum: Painting between © Bibliothèque Nationale France, Paris. Altar and Gallery, Fig. 19, p. 173). Cover Illustration (The Entry of Queen Christina into Paris in 1656, © Uppsala auktionskammare, Uppsala Étienne Bouhot (1780–1862), View of the Pavillon by François Chauveau, Fig. 2, p. 32). (Acquisitions 2017: Exposé, Fig 4, p. 178). de Bellechasse on rue Saint-Dominique in Paris, © Finnish National Gallery/ Sinebrychoff Art 1823. Oil on canvas, 55.5 x 47 cm. Purchase: the Museum, Helsinki. Photo: Jaakko Lukumaa Graphic Design Hedda and N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationalmuseum, (Self-Portraits and Artists’ Portraits as Portraits of BIGG NM 7434. Friends – A Selection of Paintings and Drawings, Fig. 2, p. 72). Layout Publisher © IKEA. Agneta Bervokk Susanna Pettersson, Director General. (Spika and Tajt – Alternative Furniture for a Young Generation, Fig. 5, p. 88). Translation and Language Editing Editors © Moderna museet, Stockholm Clare Barnes, Gabriella Berggren, and Martin Ludvig Florén, Magnus Olausson and Martin Olin. (Henry B. Goodwin – A Visual Artist with the Naylor. Camera as His Tool, Fig. 2, p. 90). Editorial Committee © The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Digital Publishing Ludvig Florén, Carina Fryklund, Eva Lena image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Ludvig Florén, Magnus Olausson, and Martin Karlsson, Audrey Lebioda, Ingrid Lindell, Program. Olin (Editors) and Ingrid Lindell (Publications Magnus Olausson, Martin Olin, Cilla Robach (Per Krafft the Younger and Belisarius – One of Manager). and Lidia Westerberg Olofsson. the Foremost Swedish Examples of Neoclassical Painting in the French Style, Figs. 3–4, pp. 113–114). Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum is published Photographers © Albert Bonniers Förlag, Stockholm annually and contains articles on the history and Nationalmuseum Photographic Studio/ (Nils Kreuger’s Drafts for the Covers of Bland theory of art relating to the collections of the Linn Ahlgren, Erik Cornelius, Anna Danielsson, Franska Bönder (1889) by August Strindberg and Nationalmuseum. Cecilia Heisser, Per-Åke Persson and Hans Ord och Bild (1897), Fig. 2, p. 137). Thorwid. © Bukowskis auktioner, Stockholm Nationalmuseum (Nils Kreuger’s Drafts for the Covers of Bland Box 16176 Picture Editors Franska Bönder (1889) by August Strindberg and SE–103 24 Stockholm, Sweden Ludvig Florén and Rikard Nordström. Ord och Bild (1897), Fig. 3, p. 138; Acquisitions www.nationalmuseum.se 2017: Exposé, Fig, 3, p. 178). Photo Credits © Pia Ulin. © Nationalmuseum, the authors and the owners of © Le Gallerie degli Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti, Florence. (The Nationalmuseum’s New Restaurant – An the reproduced works. Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi. Artistic Collaboration, Figs. 1, 2, 4, and 5, pp. 149, (An Unpublished Drawing on Panel by Salvator 150, 152 and 153). ISSN 2001-9238 Rosa Depicting a Landscape with a Philosopher © Wikimedia Commons/ Public Domain and Astrological Symbols, Fig. 3, p. 19). (Per Krafft the Younger and Belisarius – One of © Teylers Museum, Haarlem. the Foremost Swedish Examples of Neoclassical (An Unpublished Drawing on Panel by Salvator Painting in the French Style, Fig 3, p. 112 and ArtRosa Depicting Bulletin a Landscape with a Philosopher of NationalmuseumIn the Breach of Decorum: Painting between Stockholm and Astrological Symbols, Fig. 5, p. 21). Altar and Gallery, Figs. 1–8, 10–12, and 14–18, © The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. pp. 155–172). Photo by Pavel Demidov. © Wikimedia Commons/ CC BY 3.0 Volumes 24–25 Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volumes 24–25, 2017–2018 ACQUISITIONS/CARL CHRISTOFFER GJÖRWELL – A NEOCLASSICIST ABROAD Carl Christoffer Gjörwell – A Neoclassicist Abroad Wolfgang Nittnaus Fig. 1 Carl Christoffer Gjörwell (1766–1837),“Elevation de L’Hopital”, Elevation Drawing of a Hospital Building, probably 1786. Graphite, pen and ink, wash on paper, 257 x 293 mm. Purchase: the Hedda and N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationalmuseum, NMH 123/2017. In 2017 the Nationalmuseum acquired a Gjörwell was active as an architect from Arts in 1784, as a pupil of Olof Tempelman collection of architectural and free-hand 17883 until his death in 1837. His work in- (1745–1816). From 1788 he assisted Louis drawings, sketchbooks and documents cludes the Echo Temple in Haga Park, the Jean Desprez (1743–1804) with construc- belonging to the architect Carl Christoffer Queen’s Pavilion (now Haga Palace), and tion work in Haga Park on a Grand Palace, Gjörwell (1766–1837).1 The collection had the Garrison Hospital on Kungsholmen in of which only the foundations and base- been handed down in the family, via the Stockholm (now the Stockholm County ment were ever built, and other buildings. architect’s daughter Elisabeth Gjörwell Council building). In 1803, Gjörwell was appointed city (1806–1855) and her descendants, to the He began his studies at the School of architect of Stockholm. seller.2 Architecture of the Royal Academy of Fine 121 Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volumes 24–25, 2017–2018 ACQUISITIONS/CARL CHRISTOFFER GJÖRWELL – A NEOCLASSICIST ABROAD After his years as a student at the Academy and an assistant to Desprez, Gjörwell made a tour of Italy in 1794–96. This was a study tour he had been promised by Gustav III before his death, and which Gjörwell paid for by taking an advance on his salary for the work at Haga. The purpose of the journey was to “study Art and be perfected in the Science of Architecture”, and to “acquire finer taste and greater skill”. The collection which the National- museum acquired in 2017 consists in large part of drawings from Gjörwell’s visit to Italy. It also includes a few architectural drawings from his student days, a sketch- book from his work with Desprez, indivi- dual sketches of fantasy projects, and a few drawings from his time as city architect. Another significant part of the collection Fig. 2 Carl Christoffer Gjörwell (1766–1837),Sheets 22–23 in a Sketchbook of 31 Sheets, c. 1788–90. Pencil and ink on paper, 200 x 162 mm. Purchase: the Hedda and N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationalmuseum, comprises sketches of decorative designs, NMH 180/2017:22–23. borders, frames and the like. Gjörwell himself labelled an envelope containing these drawings “Patterns and Miscell- aneous small Drawings”. In addition, the collection includes a sketch attributed to the French architect Joseph-Jacques Ramée (1764–1842).5 Gjörwell had met him in Hamburg in 1796, on his way home from Italy.6 Among the earliest of the drawings acquired are the ones Gjörwell made during his time as a student at the Academy’s School of Architecture, where he was also taught by Jean Eric Rehn (1717–1793).7 The drawing Elevation de L’Hopital (Fig. 1) is Gjörwell’s elevation drawing of a hospital building, which was the Academy’s competition subject in 1786. Gjörwell won a “Third-Class Medal” for his proposal.8 The building volumes betray the influences of both Tempelman and Desprez. In 1788 Gjörwell started work as Desprez’s assistant on the construction projects at Haga.9 One of the sketchbooks from his time with him contains several Fig. 3 Carl Christoffer Gjörwell (1766–1837),“A View of the Lighthouse: Livorno and Some of the sketches of monumental buildings in the Mountains Beyond, 4 Aug. 94” Sheet from Sketchbook from Gjörwell’s Travels in Italy 1794–1796, 1794. spirit of Desprez and French revolutionary Pencil, pen and ink on paper, 210 x 170 mm. Purchase: the Hedda and N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationalmuseum, architecture (Fig. 2).10 NMH 182/2017:9. Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volumes 24–25, 2017–2018 122 ACQUISITIONS/CARL CHRISTOFFER GJÖRWELL – A NEOCLASSICIST ABROAD Fig. 4 Carl Christoffer Gjörwell (1766–1837),Fantasy View of Haga Palace Drawn from Memory on the Frigate Gripen Outside Livorno, 30 August 1794. Pen and ink, wash on paper, 190 x 252 mm. Purchase: the Hedda and N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationalmuseum, NMH 89/2017. The drawings from Gjörwell’s tour of Italy where there was an outbreak of plague. of them, dated 4 August 1794, shows, in from 1794 to 1796 can be compared to a After 19 days, the ship continued on its way the artist’s own words, “a view of the Light- travel journal, as most of them carry in- to Italy, arriving at Livorno in July 1794. house: Livorno and some of the mountains scriptions in the architect’s own hand de- Because of the plague in Algiers, the frigate beyond, 4 Aug. 94” (Fig. 3). tailing dates and locations. Gjörwell began had to spend 40 days in quarantine, some This simple pen-and-ink drawing his journey on 25 April 1794, sailing from way out in Livorno harbour. A number of records the view from the Gripen.12 One Stockholm as a passenger on the frigate drawings have been preserved from this of the documents transferred to the Gripen. The first port of call was Algiers, time, depicting life on board.11 One Nationalmuseum Archives is a list and 123 Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volumes 24–25, 2017–2018 ACQUISITIONS/CARL CHRISTOFFER GJÖRWELL – A NEOCLASSICIST ABROAD Fig.