Art Bulletin of

Volume 23

Fritz von Dardel’s Portrait of John Panzio Tockson

Magnus Olausson, Director of Collections and Research Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, © The National Library of , Stockholm Graphic Design is published with generous support from (Fig. 4, p. 38. Fig. 21, p. 211. Fig. 28, p. 215) BIGG the Friends of the Nationalmuseum. © Alte Nationalgallerie, Berlin (Fig. 2, p. 40) Layout Nationalmuseum collaborates with © Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg Agneta Bervokk Svenska Dagbladet and Grand Hôtel Stockholm. (Fig. 3, p. 41) We would also like to thank FCB Fältman & © Neue Pinakothek, Munich Translation and Language Editing Malmén. (Fig. 5, p. 43) Gabriella Berggren, William Jewson, David Jones © The Morgan Library & Museum, New York and Martin Naylor Cover Illustration (Fig. 4, p. 109. Fig. 32–33, p. 217) Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg (1783–1853), © The Matthiesen Gallery, London Publishing Danish. “Ciociara”– Portrait of a Roman Country Girl, (Fig. 1, p. 108) Ludvig Florén, Magnus Olausson (Editors) and 1816. Oil on canvas, 52 x 46.5 cm. Purchase: Wiros © The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford Ingrid Lindell (Publications Manager) Fund. NM 7334. (Fig. 2, p. 122) © Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum is published Publisher (Fig. 3, p. 123) annually and contains articles on the history and Berndt Arell, Director General © Robilant + Voena theory of art relating to the collections of the (Fig. 4, p. 124) Nationalmuseum. Editor © The Swedish National Archives, Stockholm Ludvig Florén and Magnus Olausson (Fig. 3, p. 204) Nationalmuseum © The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City. Box 16176 Editorial Committee Photo: Joshua Ferdinand SE–103 24 Stockholm, Sweden Janna Herder, Linda Hinners, Merit Laine, (Fig. 4, p. 205) www.nationalmuseum.se Lena Munther, Magnus Olausson, Martin Olin, © Musée du Louvre, . RMN-Grand Palais/Art © Nationalmuseum, the authors and the owners of Maria Perers and Lidia Westerberg Olofsson Resource, NY the reproduced works (Fig. 5, p. 205) Photographs © Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna ISSN 2001-9238 Nationalmuseum Photographic Studio/ (Fig. 8, p. 207) Linn Ahlgren, Bodil Beckman, Erik Cornelius, © The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Anna Danielsson, Cecilia Heisser, Sofia Persson, Digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Per-Åke Persson and Hans Thorwid Program (Fig. 10, p. 208. Fig. 30, p. 216) Picture Editor © Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam Rikard Nordström (Fig. 11, p. 208) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Photo Credits (Fig. 18, p. 210. Fig. 23, p. 212. Fig. 31, p. 216) © Thorvaldsens Museum, Copenhagen © Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia (Fig. 5, p. 21. Fig. 1, p. 36) (Fig. 24, p. 213. Fig. 26, p. 214) © Amsterdams Historisch Museum, Amsterdam © Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis. (Fig. 2, p. 32) John Herron Fund. © Trustees of the British Museum, London (Fig. 25, p. 213) (Fig. 3, p. 33. Fig. 6, p. 38) © auktionsverk © The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland (Fig. 8, p. 136) (Fig. 2, p. 36)

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volume 23, 2016 4 acquisitions/fritz von dardel’s portrait of john panzio tockson

Fritz von Dardel’s Portrait of John Panzio Tockson

Magnus Olausson Director of Collections and Research

Alongside a career as a military officer and civil servant, Fritz von Dardel (1817–1901) had the opportunity around 1840 to train as an artist in Paris, under Léon Cogniet and Eugène Lami.1 On his return home, the urbane and multitalent- ed Dardel soon became aide-de-camp to and a close confidant of Crown Prince Karl (later Karl XV). In the field of art in particular, Dardel was to play an important role, advising the king on purchases and expanding the collections of the National- museum. From his teacher Eugène Lami he had acquired a talent for portraying the glittering society life of his day in deftly ex- ecuted watercolours. He is chiefly associa- ted with slightly caricatured, or “charged”, portraits of contemporary celebrities, some of whom he encountered in his role as lord-in-waiting. Dardel also produced a number of interesting topographical and cultural-historical depictions of scenes and events that he had witnessed.

Fig. 1 Fritz von Dardel (1817–1901), John Panzio Tockson (Toxon) (c. 1838–1888), footman to Karl XV, married to Mathilda Charlotta Andersson. Pencil, partly watercolour, on paper, 20 x 15.5 cm. Purchase: Axel Hirsch Fund. Nationalmuseum, NMGrh 5116.

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pipes, earning him the epithet “The Pipe 5. SSA, af Edholms samling, E volume 10, invoice Cleaner”.4 Preserved records confirm this, submitted by John Panzio Tockson to the Marshal of the Court, Erik af Edholm, dated 30 September but Tockson did a good deal more.5 He 1862: “July: Gratuities for tending the dogs during served as the king’s personal attendant, my absence in Denmark – 3. … August: Paid for and looked after his dogs and his horse. transport in Norway during the Camp – 1 – 58. … It is in the role of a groom that we see Bought pipe cleaners in Norway – 4.” Tockson in the recently acquired portrait 6. August Strindberg, Det nya riket, Stockholm 1913, pp. 10–11. by Dardel (Fig. 1). He is shown wearing 7. Lars Elgklou, Bernadotte: Historien – och historier – one of his characteristic costumes, with om en familj, Stockholm 1978, pp. 88–90. a red fez, bolero-like jacket and knee 8. Augusta Åkerlöf’s portrait of Tockson, painted breeches. In his hands he holds the reins in 1862, was originally part of Karl XV’s collection of a magnificent horse, sketched to the and was transferred in 1951 from NM CXV 322 to the Swedish National Portrait Gallery. Cf. Boo left in the drawing. Tockson used to von Malmborg, Svensk porträttkonst under fem accompany Karl XV on horseback on his århundraden, Malmö 1978, p. 267. “May Day promenades” on Djurgården, 9. Cf. Dardel’s entirely stereotypical representation an occurrence also mentioned by August of Tockson attending Karl XV and Frederick VII of Strindberg in his social satire Det nya riket Denmark at the camp at Ljungbyhed in 1860; see Oskar II, Mina memoarer III, Stockholm 1960. (The New Kingdom).6 On one of these

occasions, Tockson is said to have care- Fig. 2 Augusta Åkerlöf (1829–1878), John Panzio Tockson (c. 1838–1888), footman to Karl XV, married lessly ended up in a ditch, after which to Mathilda Charlotta Andersson. Oil, 74 x 61 cm. he ceased to be part of the king’s escort Nationalmuseum, NMGrh 2320. on his traditional ride. He did not leave the court altogether, however, until after Charles XV’s death, when he received a small pension. Tockson married in 1870, had two children, and made a living doing a variety of casual work in Stockholm until his death.7 In parallel with his reminiscences in visual John Panzio Tockson has previously form, Fritz von Dardel wrote a series of been associated with Augusta Åkerlöf’s memoirs, which were published under the (1829–1878) likeness of him, painted title of Minnen. An individual of whom in 1862, probably as a commission for 8 we catch only occasional glimpses in that Karl XV. To that image, we can now add work, but whom Dardel drew all the more Dardel’s unusually penetrating rendering often, was John Panzio Tockson or Toxon of Tockson which, unlike his more cari- (1838–88), first footman to Karl XV.2 His catured and stereotyped representations, background is veiled in mystery, but he was offers a living portrait of the king’s first 9 most probably born in Africa, possibly in footman. It throws into sharper relief our Madagascar. Rumour has it that Tockson image of a court servant of African origin, was sold as a slave, but managed to escape the last in Sweden with the title of “Court and finally made his way to Gothenburg. Moor”. There he is believed to have first entered the service of a Major Wästfelt and then Notes: 1. Gunnar Ekholm, “Fritz von Dardel”, in Svenskt become a steward with the Älvsborg konstnärslexikon, vol. II, Malmö 1953, p. 35. See also Regiment, before ending up at the court Angela Rundquist, Fritz von Dardel: han tecknade sitt of Karl XV around 1860.3 liv, Stockholm 2015. Dardel first mentions Tockson in June 2. Fritz von Dardel, Minnen, Stockholm 1912, 1861, in connection with the Midsummer p. 200. 3. Erik Thyselius, Karl XV och hans tid, Stockholm celebrations at Ulriksdal. His many duties 1910, pp. 780–782. included filling and cleaning the king’s 4. Dardel 1912, vol. I, p. 200.

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