Uppsala’s art treasures on display in large exhibit at the Zorn Museum
Unique 17th century curiosities, magnificent portraits, wonderful landscapes and serene still lifes – Uppsala University owns one of Sweden’s largest and oldest collections of art. This autumn, parts of the collection will be on loan to the large winter exhibit at the Zorn Museum.
Many artworks are on display in the buildings at Uppsala University, where they can be viewed by students, teachers and University employees, but with limited access to the general public. The aim of the collaboration and the exhibition is to make a rich selection of the University’s treasures accessible to a larger audience.
“The current renovation of the University Main Building has brought a unique opportunity to loan out a generous number of paintings to the Zorn Museum in Mora where they can be enjoyed by a new audience,” says Mikael Ahlund, Deputy Director of the Uppsala University Museum Gustavium and responsible for the University’s art collection.
“Although the Zorn Museum is located in the relatively small town of Mora, it has a lot of visitors from all over the country who travel there during the winter season, especially during the Vasaloppet ski race. Exhibiting works from the University’s collection there means that lots of different visitors will get the chance to see them, not only residents of Mora.”
The exhibition begins with works usually hung in the University’s oldest preserved building, 17th century Gustavianum, continues through Linnaeus’s Hammarby and other milieus characterised by the artistic and scientific golden age of the 18th century, and then moves on to the University Main Building’s ceremonial 19th century and a particularly striking portrait collection.
In addition to portraits, the exhibit also contains landscapes, still lifes and genre pieces from a number of different countries and eras. A selection of objects from the famous Augsburg Art Cabinet also feature in the exhibition, as well as some magnificent works from Uppsala University Library’s collections, including a volume of Olof Rudbeck the Elder’s celebrated Blomboken (Flower Book) from the late 17th century.
Another theme explored in the exhibition is artist Anders Zorn’s many connections to Uppsala, to the University and to its art collection. The exhibition is a collaboration between the Zorn Museum and the Uppsala University Museum Gustavium.
Exhibit: Art Treasures from Uppsala University
Date and Location: The Zorn Museum in Mora, 8 October 2016 – 5 March 2017
Anneli Waara