Max Walter Svanberg (February 21, 1912 – May 28, 1994) was a Swedish surrealist painter, illustrator, and designer. His most prevalent motifs were of women's bodies merged with elements of flora and fauna. Born in

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal popula ...

, Sweden, Svanberg founded the Swedish artist group

Imaginisterna Imaginisterna (Swedish for ''the Imaginists'') was a group of Swedish painters formed 1945 and dissolved 1955. Seeking an alternative approach to surrealism they turned away from the detailed style of Salvador Dalí and looked for inspiration from ...

in 1948, but left them soon after. In 1950, he published an album of lithographs. In 1953, he was invited to join a surrealist group in Paris led by

André Breton André Robert Breton (; 19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first ''Surrealist Manifesto'' (''Manifeste du surréalisme'') o ...

. Svanberg exhibited at the Galerie de l’Etoile Scellee in 1955. In 1958, he illustrated an edition of

Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he sta ...

’s ''

Illuminations Illuminations may refer to: Shows and festivals * IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth, a nightly fireworks show currently at Epcot at Walt Disney World Resort *'' IllumiNations'', original nightly firework show at Epcot at Walt Disney World Resor ...

''. He was awarded the

Prince Eugen Medal The Prince Eugen Medal ( sv, Prins Eugen-medaljen) is a medal conferred by the King of Sweden for "outstanding artistic achievement". The medal was established in 1945 by the then King of Sweden, Gustaf V, in connection with the eightieth birthd ...

for painting in 1965. Svanberg died in

Limhamn Limhamn () is, in an administrative sense, the southern district of Malmö Municipality in Sweden. Before 1915, Limhamn was (briefly) a town of its own. The population of Limhamn-Bunkeflo (including suburbs) is 31,000, of which 7,000 live in t ...

, Sweden.

References

* Bra Böckers Lexikon, Band 22 (1981) 1912 births 1994 deaths Recipients of the Prince Eugen Medal {{Sweden-painter-stub