When Sivert turned seven in the small village of Bodsjö in Jämtland, he received his very first painting as a gift – an oil painting by the Jämtland artist John Hedman. An unusual present for a seven-year-old, and we don't know if it was a result of an already displayed interest in art or if it was the spark that ignited it all. What we do know is that the painting still remains in his collection, and his passion for art in general, and painting in particular, was what most distinctly defined him.

– Our father was an ambitious and meticulous man with an eye for details, and with great care, he selected the art that would become part of his collection. Always the first to arrive at every vernissage, unless he had managed to see the exhibition beforehand. Each artwork was studied thoroughly, often in conversation with the artist and gallery owner.

– At home in the art gallery, while recounting the story of the artist currently showcased there, we saw the passion and love that resided within him. Art became his natural language, and rarely did he light up as much as when he made one of us understand a particular detail in a painting or why it was crucial for it to hang exactly where it did.

– We now hope that parts of dad's collection will find their way to locations and homes where the art can inspire the same passion it brought him.

"… To surround oneself with your paintings is a privilege, an escape to a violent dance, a romantic adventure, a rest beside the road in a quietly shimmering landscape…"(Quote from Sivert's private correspondence).

Sandra, Jeanette, and Wilhelm, children of Sivert Oldenvi