Bengt Lindström

BENGT LINDSTRÖM (Sweden, 1925–2008).
Untitled.
Carborundum engraving, print no. 41/120.
Signed and numbered by hand.
Measurements: 45 x 43.5 cm (plate); 66 x 52 cm (paper).

The print up for auction brings together all the characteristics that made Bengt Lindström’s pictorial language unmistakable: a large, frontal, fragmented face rendered in an expressionist style, an intense palette of pure, saturated colors, and a composition of great visual power that conveys energy and vitality. The deliberate distortion of features, the monumental scale of the figure, and the evocation of masks or characters from Norse mythology and primitive art are recurring elements in his work, making this piece immediately recognizable as a representative example of his style.

Bengt Lindström developed an artistic language rooted in modern art, specifically Expressionism, the COBRA movement, and Art Brut. His work is characterized by its intensity, primal quality, and great chromatic and gestural power. He trained in Stockholm under I. Grünewald, at the Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen, and at the Art Institute of Chicago. In 1947, he settled in Paris, where he completed his studies under A. Lothe and F. Léger, while also experimenting with a wide variety of methods and techniques. Gaining recognition in the 1950s, Lindström held solo exhibitions in cities such as Paris, London, Brussels, Cincinnati, and Tokyo. Most of his work is currently held by the Krimaro Foundation, as well as by the Reina Sofía Museum in Madrid, the Carnegie Institute, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Tate Gallery in London, among many others.