artist: Gunnar Zilo (Swedish 1885-1958)
medium: oil on panel
dimensions: 54 x 45 cm art size / 67 1/2 x 58 1/2 cm framed (approx)
signed
circa 1940s/50s
presented in a new off white painted timber liner and natural outer hand finished timber frame
* features the iconic Eva chair by Swedish designer Bruno Mathsson
AU $1880 (approx US $1165 / 1130 EUROS / 185,000 yen / 945 GBP - for exact current conversion visit xe.com)
artist bio
Sven Gunnar Zilo was born July 9, 1885 in Järstorp, Småland. He was a Swedish artist.
Zilo began painting as a young teenager and received his first real education around 1903 from drawing teacher John Mellander at the Tekniska skolan in Jönköping. He then continued his studies with Axel Erdmann and Gunnar Hallström at Valands målarskola in Gothenburg from 1910 to 1913 and at Bessy Højer's målarskola in Copenhagen from 1919 to 1921. He stayed in Paris from 1921 to 1922 where he conducted self-study at the various museums and drew sketches together with Bror Hjorth, Hilding Linnqvist and Vera Nilsson at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière. After his time in Paris, Zilo returned to Copenhagen where he was active until 1929.
Zilo exhibited widely throughout his career. Alongside Jöel Mila, he exhibited at the Stora hotel in Jönköping in 1919. Together with Gideon Börje he showed at the Svensk-franska konstgalleriet (Swedish-French Art Gallery) in 1924. During his time in Copenhagen there he exhibited annually in the group exhibitions at Charlottenborg and a number of times with Den Frie Udstilling (Dernmark’s oldest art association). He showed in group exhibitions arranged by the Norra Smålands konstförening and Södra Vätterbygdens konstförening. He had solo exhibitions at a number of galleries in Sweden and Denmark including shows at Galerie Moderne in Stockholm and Galleri Vinkel in Copenhagen. In Jönköping, Master Gudmund's Guild organised a large Zilo exhibition in 1935 and a large memorial exhibition of his art was shown in 1960 at the County Museum in Jönköping, and in connection with the Småland Salon in 1965 a memorial collection was shown in Värnamo.
Among his public works are the oil painting Färjestället in Jönköping Town Hall and the painting Nedtagningen från korset for Ljungarums församling. In 1940, he was one of the founders of the formation of the association Södra Vätterbygdens konständer. He is best known for his portraits and still lifes.
Zilo is represented in public collections including works at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Kalmar Art Museum, Halland Art Museum, Jönköping County Museum the archive of decorative arts in Lund, Jönköping Municipality and Huskvarna Municipality collections.
He passed away in Jönköping at the age of 72 on May 4, 1958.