Stockholm in Pastel - Ingvar Elén - ca 1950/1960 - 40x60 cm

Stockholm Cityscape in Pastel Tones. Oil on board, signed lower right “Elén”. Presented in a newly made oak frame.

The city scene is built up from broad, confidently laid planes of color rather than detail: rooftops and walls become a mosaic of powdery pink, apricot, butter yellow, sage green and dusty blue.

Elén’s handling of paint is characteristically restrained and tactile. The thinly worked, slightly scumbled surface lets the ground and underlying layers breathe, giving the whole composition a soft, almost atmospheric quality. The simplified, near-abstract massing of the buildings shows the influence of the Scandinavian post-Cubist and colorist traditions, while the gentle tonal harmony keeps the mood calm and contemplative. The result is a view that feels both unmistakably Nordic and timeless.

The painting has been newly framed in a light, natural oak frame with a clean, slim profile. Its warm, understated grain complements the pastel palette beautifully and makes the work an effortless fit for a modern Scandinavian or Japandi interior, where it will bring quiet color, texture and a sense of light to the wall.

Size: 49,5 x 59,5 cm (with frame)

About the artist:

Elén (1915-1973) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts from 1933 to 1937. After his studies he travelled and worked in Paris till 1939. In 1943, he was awarded the Jenny Lind Scholarship which gave him the opportunity to carry out study trips to Denmark and Norway, among other places. Elén exhibited at Konstnärshuset in Stockholm in 1949 and at Konstgalleriet in Borås in 1951. He participated in Liljevalch's Bumerangen and in exhibitions with the Swedish Artists' Association. His work consists of still lifes, cityscapes, interiors and landscapes from France and Italy in oil, tempera and watercolor.