Framed Oil Painting, Haystack, by Fritz Smedberg (1900-1977)

Fritz Smedberg (1900–1977)
Motif from Mångberg Gesunda
Oil on canvas
Canvas approx 24 × 28 cm.
Frame approx 32 × 36 cm, carved and painted wood.
 
 
In this atmospheric study of rural Dalarna, Fritz Smedberg turns his attention to a solitary haystack set against the rising contour of the Gesunda mountain. Painted with his characteristic restraint, the scene is rendered in deep shadow and muted light, capturing the quiet transition between day and dusk. The broad, confident brushstrokes in the foreground suggest recently worked fields, their soft bands of green and ochre guiding the eye toward the darkened landscape beyond.
Smedberg, known for his sensitive depictions of Swedish countryside life, often sought out unembellished subjects that revealed the rhythm of work and the intimacy of place. Here, the haystack becomes the focal point of a wider landscape held in stillness, its humble form set beneath the sweeping silhouette of the mountain.