Hare on winter landscape
Signed Bruno Liljefors and dated 1917. Canvas 102 x 176 cm.
Bukowski Auktioner AB, auction 542, Internationella höstauktionen, 28 November - 1 December,2006, cat. no. 109
As an artist, Bruno Liljefors sought to challenge traditional art conventions when it came to depicting animals and nature. By portraying a world from the perspective of animals, he created a unique visual universe that differed from what had previously been the standard. His ability to capture the movements of animals and their interaction with the wild nature established him as a prominent artist both nationally and internationally.
Liljefors' depiction of a hare in a vast winter landscape, such as the one seen in the auction painting, is considered one of the artist's most appreciated motifs. The hare's movement in the snow, seen together with the animal as a whole, forms the composition of the painting. The interaction between the hare and the wild winter landscape in the auction painting can be described based on Liljefors' own words in his picture collection "Ute i Markerna" (Out in the Fields), 1912.
"The connection between the wild animal and its surroundings appears so organic that, for example, a hare, startled from a bush and hurrying away in the terrain, seems like a fruit separating from its husk."