Marine painter Per Wilhelm Cedergren (Stockholm 1820-1896 Spånga) was intimately associated with the marine since childhood. As a nine-year-old, Cedergren was enrolled as a crown's ship's boy. Cedergren's aptitude for drawing was noticed and after a few years he got work drawing templates when ships were to be built. When Cedergren was twenty years old, a folklorist happened to visit his parents' home and noticed a painting on the wall that Cedergren had made. He was offered free tuition for three months at the Art Academy's Sunday school.
Cedergren's marine paintings are usually documentary depictions of ships and boats, mainly in the Stockholm environment. He also made many ship portraits, probably on commission. The royal family bought several of his paintings and Karl XV even bought a small farm for him outside Drottningholm. Cedergren is represented at the National Museum, the Maritime History Museum and the Nordic Museum.
