The forbidden painter

Harald Engman

In this auction, we have the opportunity to present an unusually stunning, dramatic collection of works by Harald Engman (1903-1968). His best paintings – such as these – reveal him as an excellent and unique figure of Danish art. This self-taught artist mostly depicted the dark side of the city of Copenhagen during the 1930s – unemployment, poverty, the murky side streets with their bars and prostitutes. During the Second World War period, he struck a distinctly anti-Nazi course, which resulted in a ban on exhibitions of his paintings and the closure of the ‘Sorte Faner’ (‘black banners’) exhibition in 1940.

Harald Engman’s works have been compared to those of satirical artists such as George Grosz, Anton Hansen and Robert Storm-Petersen, although such comparisons are far from exhaustive. His painting “Den gode Jord” (“the benevolent Earth”) has to be regarded as one of the artist’s absolute masterpieces. The title – “Den gode Jord” (“the benevolent Earth”) – stands in glaringly ironic contrast to the overwhelming destruction that unravels on the canvas. A contemporary doomsday vision comment with parallels harking back to medieval times and “The Garden of Earthly Delights” by Hieronimus Bosch (c. 1490–1510).

In 1943, Engman fled to Sweden, where he continued his work, but his post-war production was generally rather limited. The artist has subsequently acquired the nickname of “the forbidden painter”, partly because of his paintings from the time of the occupation.

View all the Harald Engman works at auction here

Preview: Thursday 24 February – Monday 28 February 2011.
Auction: Monday 7 March 2011.

Read more about the international auction here