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Agda Holst
Red Cactus Flower

circa 1912-20

About the Item

A fauvist still life painting of a red cactus flower by Agda Holst (1886-1976). Oil on panel, signed Agda Holst. Probably painted somewhere around 1912-1920 when she had returned to Sweden after her studies abroad. It is painted on a Swedish panel but has strong influences of the artist Kees van Dongen whom she studied for in Paris. Agda Holst was a female Swedish artist and studied art in Paris in 1907 at the Académie Colarossi under Christian Krohg, among others. In 1910–1911 she studied art in Munich with Julius Exter and then in Paris with Kees van Dongen from 1911–1912 and, in the early 1920s, with André Lhote in Paris. She held solo exhibitions in Skåne and group exhibitions in Stockholm, Copenhagen, Bordeaux and New York. Agda Holst's art is characterized by a factual study of form with a moderate stylization. The motifs are most often cubist-inspired still lifes, portraits, figure studies and naturalistic landscapes. "She differs in many ways from her contemporary female colleagues, not least because she was almost always treated exceptionally well by her male colleagues. They seem to have respected her integrity both as a woman and an artist at a time when the relationship was often different." Together with some artist friends Holst founded Aura Artist Group in 1928 which purpose was to promote "good art or quality art". Aura still exists today. Fauvism is a style of painting and an art movement that emerged in France at the beginning of the 20th century. It was the style of les Fauves, (the wild beasts), a group of modern artists whose works emphasized painterly qualities and strong color over the representational or realistic values retained by Impressionism. While Fauvism as a style began around 1904 and continued beyond 1910, the movement as such lasted only a few years. The paintings of the Fauves were characterized by seemingly wild brush work and strident colors, while their subject matter had a high degree of simplification and abstraction as can be seen in our painting.
  • Creator:
    Agda Holst (1886 - 1976, Swedish)
  • Creation Year:
    circa 1912-20
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 14.97 in (38 cm)Width: 13.19 in (33.5 cm)Depth: 1.38 in (3.5 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
    Very nice good condition. The painting has recently undergone a light surface cleaning.
  • Gallery Location:
    Stockholm, SE
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU2608215628862

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