Einar Jolin

Einar Jolins tidiga konstnärsår fylldes bland annat av ett livligt människostudium, ett intresse som under åren i Paris förbyttes från en ambition att skildra modellernas karaktär till att inordna dem nästan som dockor i ett raffinerat färg- och formspel. Läroåren hos Matisse gav hans måleri en ny dekorativ inriktning med ett spännande förhållande mellan modell och miljö, med en mästerlig kolorit och en förmåga att låta unga, söta familjeflickor eller dandyaktiga unga män posera på ett både naivt och trohjärtat sätt. Porträtten skildrar en tid, en tidsanda, senaste mode och början på en ny epok.
När Jolin 1916 målar den eleganta unga damen i svart päls och med esprier i hatten är det en konstnär, som redan under några år uppmärksammats för sina målningar, som inbjudits att delta i Baltiska utställningen i Malmö och som etablerat sig i egen ateljé i Stockholm.

Den aktuella målningen har ingått i Willem Peplers internationella konstsamling. Köpet av målningen beskrivs enligt följande av honom själv:
"Bukowski's, the Stockholm-based auction house mentioned earlier from which I have bought several pieces, regularly sends me catalogs. When I went to Stockholm on my way to New York later in 2002 I found the latest one at my apartment. It listed several pieces by well- known and established Swedish artists, mainly active in the 1930s and 40s. Their names were familiar to me from reading about and seeing Swedish modern art in my youth, and I wanted to see the pieces in real life. Of course, an auction house showroom is not the best place for viewing, because too much is shown in a limited space.
I was particularly interested in a painting by Einar Jolin (1890-1976), an artist whose work I have always liked, some pieces more than others, of course. He is particularly well known for depicting the city of Stockholm in a somewhat naïve fashion. He was only 26 years old when he painted the piece at Bukowski's, "Modell i svart päls" (Model in Black Fur Coat It). It depicts a lady sitting on a chair with her handbag in front of her. Prominently presented in the catalog, it was also hung well at the auction house.
I called Birgitta Forsberg, who had stood in for me at the Bukowski sale described earlier, through which I bought a piece by Isaac Grünewald and, eventually, a wonderful painting by Carl Kylberg. Since I could not stay in Stockholm until the auction I again asked Birgitta to represent me.
We met for dinner well before my departure and agreed on limits for the painting by Jolin and a small sculpture in yellow metal by Christian Berg (1893-1976), a kind of maquette for a large piece, "Parkskulptur". Birgitta reported by cell phone to me in New York what was happening, which helped me in deciding to buy the sculpture, even though I had at first felt that the painting would be enough. As it turned out, I got the sculpture below the estimate but had to pay up for the painting. I was quite happy with the results."