Jenny Eugenia Nyström (13 or 15 June 1854 in

Kalmar Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 36,392 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...

, Sweden – 17 January 1946 in Stockholm) was a painter and illustrator mainly known as the creator of the Swedish image of the '' jultomte'' on

Christmas cards A Christmas card is a greeting card sent as part of the traditional celebration of Christmas in order to convey between people a range of sentiments related to Christmastide and the holiday season. Christmas cards are usually exchanged during ...

and magazine covers, thus linking the Swedish version of Santa Claus to the gnomes and tomtar of

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

Background

Her father was a school teacher and piano teacher, and also the cantor of the

Kalmar Castle Kalmar Castle ( sv, Kalmar slott) is a castle in the city Kalmar in the province of Småland in Sweden. History During the twelfth century a round defensive tower was built on Kalmarsund and a harbour constructed. At the end of the thirteen ...

Church. When Jenny Nyström was eight years old, the family moved to Gothenburg, where her father had found a better paying teaching job. She studied at the ''

Kjellbergska flickskolan Kjellbergska flickskolan ('Kjellberg Girls' School') was a Girls' School in Gothenburg, Sweden. It was active between 1835 and 1967. History The school was founded by a fund granted in the will of the wealthy merchant Jonas Kjellberg (1752– ...

''.Jenny E Nyström-Stoopendaal, urn:sbl:8514, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av Barbro Werkmäster), hämtad 2019-03-26. In 1865 she started in the Gothenburg art school Göteborgs Musei-, Rit- och Målarskola, today known as Konsthögskolan Valand, and in 1873 she was admitted to the

Royal Swedish Academy of 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, archite ...

in Stockholm, where she studied for eight years. Thanks to a scholarship, this was followed by studies in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

1882–1886, at Académie Colarossi and Académie Julian.

Career

While in Paris, Nyström discovered the booming

postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...

market, and tried to persuade the Swedish publishing house Bonnier to start producing postcards, but they declined. ''Lille Viggs äventyr på julafton'' ("Little Vigg's Adventures on Christmas Eve"), written by the author

Viktor Rydberg Abraham Viktor Rydberg (; 18 December 182821 September 1895) was a Swedish writer and a member of the Swedish Academy, 1877–1895. "Primarily a classical idealist", Viktor Rydberg has been described as "Sweden's last Romantic" and by 1859 was ...

inspired Nyström. She made drawings accompanying this tale. Viktor Rydberg saw them and suggested the Bonniers publishing company to release the book. After they declined, publisher S. A. Hedlund released it in 1871. The short Christmas tale for all ages was widely printed and has since become a Christmas classic in Sweden. Jenny Nyström eventually became Sweden's most productive painter and illustrator. For many years, her illustrations were distributed by Strålin & Persson AB in

Falun Falun () is a city and the seat of Falun Municipality in Dalarna County, Sweden, with 37,291 inhabitants in 2010. It is also the capital of Dalarna County. Falun forms, together with Borlänge, a metropolitan area with just over 100,000 inhabitan ...

. In 1887, at the age of 33, she married medical student Daniel Stoopendaal (1853-1927), brother of fellow artists Henrik Wilhelm Johan Stoopendaal (1846 - 1906), Ferdinand Jacob Stoopendaal (1850-), and Georg Vilhelm Stoopendaal (1866-1953). Due to

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

Daniel was never able to finish his studies and take up his intended profession. It was instead up to Jenny to support herself, her husband and their son through her artistry, while Daniel handled her business affairs. He died in 1927. Julemotiv tegnet av Jenny Nystrøm (24207693358)

Julemotiv tegnet av Jenny Nystrøm (24207693358)

In 1933 her son, Curt Nyström Stoopendahl (1893-1965), followed in her footsteps and also became a popular postcard and poster artist, staying very close to his mother's artistic style. Even his signature, “Curt Nyström”, looked like his mother's. Likewise, her brother-in-law, Georg Stoopendaal, already in the beginning of the 19th century found postcards to be a good source of income, unlike his more serious paintings, and his Christmas cards are also clearly inspired by Jenny Nyström's.

Santa Claus and Christmas

Nyström created the Swedish image of the '' jultomte'' on numerous

and magazine covers, thus linking the Swedish version of Santa Claus to the gnomes of

Selected illustrations

*''Fornnordiska sagor'',

Albert Ulrik Bååth Albert Ulrik Bååth (13 July 1853, in Malmö, Sweden – 2 August 1912, in Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Väs ...

, author (1886) (early Norse tales) *''Den poetiska Eddan'', Nils Frederick Sander, author (1893) (the

poetic Edda The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems, which is distinct from the ''Prose Edda'' written by Snorri Sturluson. Several versions exist, all primarily of text from the Icelandic med ...

) *''Barnkammarens Bok'' (Stockholm: Fahlcrantz & Co. 1903) (the nursery book)

Gallery

Image:Hjörvard and Rolf krake.jpg, '' Heoroweard and

Hrólfr Kraki Hrólfr Kraki (Old Norse: ), ''Hroðulf'', ''Rolfo'', ''Roluo'', ''Rolf Krage'' (early 6th century) was a semi-legendary Danish king who appears in both Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian tradition. Both traditions describe him as a Danish Scylding, ...

''
(1895) Image:Thora Townhart.jpg, '' Thora Borgarhjort''
(1895) Image:Eric the victorious.jpg, ''

Eric the victorious Eric the Victorious (Old Norse: ''Eiríkr inn sigrsæli'', Modern Swedish: ''Erik Segersäll''; c. 945 – c. 995) was a Swedish monarch as of around 970. Although there were earlier Swedish kings, he is the first Swedish king in a consecutive reg ...

''
(1895) Image:Frigg, Odens hustru.jpg, ''

Frigg Frigg (; Old Norse: ) is a goddess, one of the Æsir, in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about her, she is associated with marriage, prophecy, clairvoyance and motherhood, and dwells in the wet ...

, wife of Odin''
(1893) Image:Valkyries with swan skins.jpg, ''

Valkyries In Norse mythology, a valkyrie ("chooser of the slain") is one of a host of female figures who guide souls of the dead to the god Odin's hall Valhalla. There, the deceased warriors become (Old Norse "single (or once) fighters"Orchard (1997:3 ...

with
swan skins''
(1893) File:Nystrom God-Jul 11.jpg, ''God Jul'' ("Happy Christmas!") File:Santa image, 19th century.jpg, Commercial Christmas card

References

Other sources

*Forsberg Warringer, Gunnel ''Jenny Nyström: konstnärinna'' (1992) *Forsberg Warringer, Gunnel ''Jenny Nyström: målaren och illustratören'' (1996)

External links

Jenny Nyström on the Kalmar County Museum website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nystrom, Jenny 1854 births 1946 deaths People from Kalmar Swedish illustrators Swedish women illustrators Swedish children's book illustrators Postcard artists Académie Julian alumni Académie Colarossi alumni 19th-century Swedish painters 20th-century Swedish painters Burials at Norra begravningsplatsen Swedish women painters