Jean Egger

Like many Austrian artists of the interwar period Jean Egger was attracted to France, where he was caught up in the established art scene and exhibited in the salons. His liaison with Signe Wallin, his muse and life-partner, took him to Sweden, where he painted a series of landscapes. The expressive touch of an Edvard Munch, whom he met in person, can be seen in many of Egger’s works. He was also appreciated as a portraitist and creator of intimate nudes. As Mag. Stefanie Moser-Meier writes; "The portraits of Signe are emotional and portray the relationship between the artist and his model in an impressive manner. This is why the portraits of Signe show the being of her in a highly sensible way, The painting shows his typical powerful, spontaneous and expressive brush style. The lines of his brush are never straight, the colors muted and pasty and set in lots of layers over each other." Jean Egger passed away in august 1934 in tuberculosis, he was the only 38 years old. Signe returned to their apartment i Auteuil, Paris after the war to salvage her belongings. There had been extensive damage during the occupation and she brought a collection of works by Egger back to Sweden.