Exhibited: “Claus Johansen Mindeudstilling”, Kunstforeningen, Copenhagen, 1949, cat. no. 26. Literature: Mogens Lau (ed.): “Claus Johansen 1877–1943”, Bornholms Kunstmuseum & Gudhjem Museum 2007, ill. full page in colours as pl. 13, p. 64. Provenance: Herbert von Garvens-Garvensburg (1883–1957), Sandkås, Bornholm, Denmark. Provenance: The Estate Auction of Herbert Garvens von Garvensburg, Bruun Rasmussen Auctions, auction no. 66, Copenhagen, 1955, cat. no. 76. Provenance: Private collection, Denmark.

At this autumn auction, we can present, for the first time, a small selection of paintings by the Bornholm painter Claus Johansen, which covers all of his great artistic qualities.

Johansen is particularly known for his delicate, ascetic scenes of nature – a form of melancholic mood pieces that make him a highly sought-after artist among collectors. In his own view, he painted a pure reproduction of nature, but his images are not merely lyrical depictions of reality. On the contrary, through a strong artistic simplification as well as a toning down of shapes and colours a dramatic space is created, where man is quite absent or at best completely subjugated to the whims of nature.

Johansen himself personified the myth of the dirt-poor, misunderstood artist who slaved day and night to make ends meet. He lived a modest life in self-imposed isolation on a leaky loft, where he earned a living as a day labourer and brush salesman. Most often, he worked in small formats on other artists' leftover canvas pieces or on Masonite. In spite of this humble approach to art – and his own role in the creative process – he managed to capture the uniqueness of nature's silence. He achieved a great degree of recognition from, among others, the artist colleague Oluf Høst, as well as the German nobleman and art collector Herbert von Garvens-Garvensburg, whose collection included several of the finest works in Danish art history.