Bengt Lindström

Get to know Bengt Lindström

Bengt Lindström (1925-2008) is one of our most famous visual artists who had a big impact with his pasty abstract spontaneity painting with strong colors and distorted faces. Lindström trained at Konstfack and studied with Isaac Grünewald and Otte Sköld. He studied in both Copenhagen and Chicago and lived for several years in Paris where he was accepted at both André Lhote and Fernand Léger's painting schools. Through his interest in the inherent power of colors, he came into contact with the Cobra group in France during the 1950s. Lindström made several monumental paintings and one of his single largest works is the large silo painting in Örebro. He is represented at the National Museum in Stockholm, the Moderna Museet in Stockholm and the Gothenburg Art Museum.

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HÄNDER PÅ GALLERI MELEFORS

ÅSA ERIKSSON

20 - 28 SEP 2024

GALLERI MELEFORS, LINKÖPING

TO THE EXHIBITION

AFFORDABLE ART FAIR

2 - 6 OCT 2024

NACKA STRANDMÄSSAN, STHLM

PIERRE RÅDSTEN

18 - 26 OCT 2024

GALLERI MELEFORS, LINKÖPING

Get to know

OIL PAINTINGS

Bengt Lindström's artistic expression is hard to miss. The distinctive paintings shine with strong impact; thick layers of oil paint that almost spill out of the canvas and create a vivid sense of movement. The painting radiates will power and sensuality but also spiritual aspects that possibly come from his lifelong interest in shamanistic traditions, not least the Sami ones. Here, an almost childlike sincerity shines through, something that is often seen in the greatest artists from the post-war period; the stripped-down longing to reach the very core of expression and creation. Bengt Lindström expressed himself on several occasions by saying "You have to kill the intellect to paint".

Distorted faces, thick layers of paint and strong color contrasts have made Bengt Lindström recognized worldwide and today his works are included in several significant public and private collections. He is one of the few Swedish artists who has a strong international market.

SCULPTURES

Several of Bengt Lindström's most famous signatures such as the iconic "Y" and "Tången" have become monumental works among public art in Sweden. The Y can be found as a 30.5 meter high sculpture outside the airport in Sundsvall-Timrå, half a meter higher than the famous Colossus in Rhodes. The famous "Tången" can be found in Ljungaverk. Lindström's deep fascination for the supernatural and shamanistic can be seen, among other things, in the ceramic works that reflect the Spirit of Air, Earth and Fire.

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ABOUT BENGT LINDSTRÖM

Bengt Lindström was born in 1925 in Storsjö chapel in Härjedalen and it was there that he came into contact with the Sami people, with whom he continued to have a special relationship throughout his life. The inspiration for the famous colorful colors that developed over time originates from the Sami colors. He loved to work, to develop, and what he has become most famous for are his oil paintings with dramatic expressions, often inspired by Old Norse mythology, as well as the strong, colorful colors.

After completing art studies in Stockholm (with early modernists such as Isaac Grünewald and Otte Sköld), in Copenhagen and Chicago, he went to Paris for further studies under the masters André Lhote and Fernand Léger. During the 1950s he came into contact with the COBRA group in France through his interest in the inherent power of colors. The international breakthrough came after an exhibition in Paris in 1958, and he then became a resident here throughout his working life. However, Sweden and Norrland always remained in Bengt's heart and although he was certainly influenced by the art scene in Paris, he always held on to his Swedish roots.

LITHOGRAPHS

Bengt Lindström (1925-2008) is one of Sweden's all-time greatest artists both through his influence at home in Sweden but also through the fact that he is the Swedish artist who is represented in the most museums internationally ever.

In addition to being productive in his oil painting right up until the fall of his age, Bengt Lindström created a large number of lithographs. For many years he had his own lithographic workshop in Paris where they experimented with a number of graphic techniques and materials. In the series "Svenska män & kvinnor, Lindström portrayed ten famous faces from Swedish history, including August Strindberg, Gustav Vasa and Selma Lagerlöf.