Alma Constantia Arnell (2 May 1857 – 13 September 1934) was a Swedish painter.

Biography

Born in Säbrå,

Ångermanland Ångermanland ( or ) is a historical province (''landskap'') in the northern part of Sweden. It is bordered (clockwise from the north) by Swedish Lapland, Västerbotten, the Gulf of Bothnia, Medelpad and Jämtland. The name is derived from the O ...

, Arnell studied in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

at Axel Kulle's school of painting under

Gustaf Cederström Gustaf Olof Cederström (1845-1933) was a Swedish painter who specialized in historical scenes and portraits. Biography His father, (1804-1892) was a naval officer and his mother, Theresine (1815-1873), was an amateur painter. His interest in his ...

and

Anders Zorn Anders Leonard Zorn (18 February 1860 – 22 August 1920) was a Swedish painter. He attained international success as a painter, sculptor, and etching artist. Among Zorn's portrait subjects include King Oscar II of Sweden and three American ...

as well as in Paris at the

Académie Colarossi The Académie Colarossi (1870–1930) was an art school in Paris founded in 1870 by the Italian model and sculptor Filippo Colarossi. It was originally located on the Île de la Cité, and it moved in 1879 to 10 rue de la Grande-Chaumière in the ...

and for several years in Rome. In 1904 she was elected to the

Nya Idun Nya Idun is a Swedish cultural association for women founded in 1885, originally as a female counterpart to Sällskapet Idun ('the Idun Society'). Its aim was to "gather educated women in the Stockholm area for informal gatherings". There was a ...

women's association. In the late 1890s and early 1900s, at least until 1907, Alma Arnell shared a studio with

Hilma af Klint Hilma af Klint (; 26 October 1862 – 21 October 1944) was a Swedish artist and mysticism, mystic whose paintings are considered among the first Abstract art, abstract works known in Western art history. A considerable body of her work predates ...

and Lotten Rönquist in the so-called ('Studio Building') in Stockholm, which the

Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts ( sv, Kungliga Akademien för de fria konsterna), commonly called the Royal Academy, is located in Stockholm, Sweden. An independent organization that promotes the development of painting, sculpture, architec ...

owned at

Hamngatan Hamngatan (Swedish: ''Port Street'') is a street in central Stockholm. It goes from Sergels torg down to Nybroplan, past NK department store, Kungsträdgården, Norrmalmstorg, and Berzelii Park. The Djurgården line travels along this street bet ...

5 at the intersection of Hamngatan and

Kungsträdgården Kungsträdgården (Swedish language, Swedish for "King's Garden") is a park in central Stockholm, Sweden. It is colloquially known as ''Kungsan''. The park's central location and its outdoor cafés makes it one of the most popular hangouts ...

. The property was the cultural centre of Stockholm at the time. The same building also housed

Blanch's Café Blanch's Café was a café in Stockholm, Sweden, located in a now demolished building on Hamngatan. The house that houses the establishment was built in 1866 according to plans of the architect Albert Törnqvist and was originally intended to h ...

and , where the battle between the Royal Academy of Fine Arts' conventional view of art and the Konstärsförbundet's French-inspired opposition movement took place. Arnell died in 1934 in Stockholm. She was primarily a

genre painter Genre painting (or petit genre), a form of genre art, depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity can be attached ...

, and a

portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

and

landscape painter Landscape painting, also known as landscape art, is the depiction of natural scenery such as mountains, valleys, trees, rivers, and forests, especially where the main subject is a wide view—with its elements arranged into a coherent compos ...

. Some of her work is on display at

Nationalmuseum Nationalmuseum (or National Museum of Fine Arts) is the national gallery of Sweden, located on the peninsula Blasieholmen in central Stockholm. The museum's operations stretches far beyond the borders of Blasieholmen, the nationalmuseum manag ...

References

1857 births 1934 deaths 19th-century Swedish painters 20th-century Swedish painters People from Härnösand Municipality Swedish genre painters Swedish landscape painters Swedish portrait painters Swedish women painters 20th-century Swedish women artists 19th-century Swedish women artists Swedish expatriates in France Swedish expatriates in Italy {{Sweden-painter-stub Members of Nya Idun