Nationalmuseum

Nationalmuseum is the national gallery of fine arts of Sweden, located on the peninsula Blasieholmen in central Stockholm.

The museum's operations stretch far beyond the borders of Blasieholmen, including the National Portrait Gallery collection at Gripshom, the Gustavsberg porcelain museum, several castle collections and the Swedish Institute in Paris ( Institut Tessin). In the summer of 2018, Nationalmuseum Jamtli opened in Östersund to exhibit parts of the collection in the north of Sweden.

The museum's benefactors include King Gustav III and Carl Gustaf Tessin. It was founded in 1792 as (Royal Museum). The present building was opened in 1866, when it was renamed the Nationalmuseum, and was among the buildings that hosted the 1866 General Industrial Exposition of Stockholm.

The current building, built between 1844 and 1866, was inspired by northern Italian Renaissance architecture. It is the design of the German architect Friedrich August Stüler, who also designed the Neues Museum in Berlin. Despite its relatively closed exterior, the building has a spacious interior dominated by a large flight of stairs leading to the topmost galleries.

The museum was enlarged in 1961 to accommodate the museum workshops, and the museum's current restaurant was opened in 1996. The building closed for renovation in 2013 and reopened on 13 October 2018. The $132 million overhaul was undertaken to allow for more of the museum's collection to be displayed and to deliver the security, accessibility, fire safety and climate control of a modern institution.

History

The museum's early history

As with several other European national galleries, the history of the Nationalmuseum involves a transition in ownership from royalty to the state, and by extension publicly available collections. In Sweden, the foundation was laid for today's state art collections in the 18th century. Several of the works included in the Nationalmuseum collection, such as its 18th-century French paintings, were once owned by Queen Lovisa Ulrika. In 1777, the queen's financial situation became unsustainable, partly the result of her ambitious and expensive pursuit of art. The debts were settled by her son King Gustav III when she agreed to surrender her collections and Drottningholm Palace.

For some time, King Gustav III stored the art collections in one of the wings at the Royal Palace, which later resulted in a need for a building dedicated to the collection.

Construction of a museum building

The project to construct a royal museum in Stockholm was one of the largest and most lavish construction works of all time, taking 12 years to complete with another three years for the interior work. The German architect Friedrich August Stüler was responsible for the design of the building and the Swedish architect Fredrik Wilhelm Scholander was responsible for the interior design. Originally, the building was intended to function as a cultural center, housing a library, auditorium, the Royal Armoury, and wardrobe collections, while only the top floor would display sculptures and paintings. In the end, however, the building primarily became a venue for the exhibition of visual art. Nationalmuseum was inaugurated in 1866 in conjunction with the General Industrial Exposition of Stockholm.

The building consisted of three floors with a façade cladding in Swedish limestone. Perhaps the most impressive feature at the time was the large glass sections, which had been manufactured in a German factory. In the early years, the exhibition halls of Nationalmuseum were not heated; visitors simply had to keep their outerwear on. Until 1915, the museum lacked toilets, and electricity was not installed until 1931.

2010s renovation

In 2009, the National Property Board of Sweden (SFV) was commissioned to perform a feasibility study for a renovation and refurbishment project, and the group presented a building program to the government in 2011. In 2012, planning began for the renovation and rebuilding project, and in February 2013, the Nationalmuseum began its evacuation of the building.

On 20 February 2014, the SFV was commissioned by the government to perform a renovation and conversion of the Nationalmuseum into a fully modern museum building. During the renovation, the building was closed to the public, but the Nationalmuseum continued to exhibit its collection in other locations in Sweden and abroad.

There were many reasons for the renovation, but primarily, it was because the building had become outdated and no longer met requirements for safety and climate control. For example, parts of the limestone had become damaged and needed replacement. As for safety, the distance between the balusters in the entrance staircase did not meet todays Swedish requirements of a maximum of 10 cm. Most importantly, the indoor climate had become unsustainable for its purpose: exhibiting artworks. Today, specific standards for temperature and humidity must be met to ensure the preservation of art. The building did not fulfill these requirements, and in later years, windows had to be sealed off to protect paintings from harmful solar radiation. In addition, there were significant heat losses due to poor insulation in the roof and windows, and the building lacked adequate ventilation.

The only architectural addition made was two objects: an elevator tower placed in the southern atrium, which was considered the most appropriate location as it had the least impact on the building, along with a service building designed in the same architectural style, located behind the museum. One of the architects involved in the project, Erik Wikerstål from Tengbom architects, notes that the woven metal cladding used is an old traditional technique in Swedish craftsmanship.

The museum was reinaugurated on 13 October 2018 by King Carl XVI Gustaf in the presence of other members of the royal family, minister of culture Alice Bah Kuhnke and over thousand visitors. The museum's exhibition space has been expanded and can now receive twice as many visitors and display almost three times as many works than had been possible before the renovation. Previously clogged windows and ceiling lanterns have been modified to create more daylight and views of the city. The noisy restaurant has been moved to a quieter location, with an airy and quiet sculpture courtyard in its former place. The museum has regained a rich color scheme inspired by the original colour palette.

Legal framework

Nationalmuseum is located in central Stockholm, which is classified as a ''national interest for cultural heritage conservation'' (swe. riksintresse för kulturmiljövården) under Ordinance (1998:808). The justification for including central Stockholm in this law is about the city's function as an administrative and political center since the Middle Ages, with all eras since then up until today represented in the architecture, as well as the strategic geographical location for trade, communication and defense.

Since 1935, Nationalmuseum has been a ''State-Owned Listed Building of National Heritage Significance'' (swe. statligt byggnadsminne) under Ordinance (2013:558). This means that the ''Swedish National Heritage Board'' (swe. Riksantikvarieämbetet) determines specific protective regulations for buildings, with the aim of preserving its character and cultural-historical value without distortion. The authority managing the property, in this case the '' National Property Board of Sweden'' (swe. Statens Fastighetsverk), is then responsible for adhering to these guidelines.

In parallel, the operations of Nationalmuseum are governed by Ordinance (2007:1175) containing ''Instructions for Nationalmuseum'', which means that the building must accommodate functions such as exhibitions, conservation, and research.

Collection

The museum collection consists of approximately 500,000 drawings from the Middle Ages to 1900, a prominent 17th-century collection of Rembrandt and other Dutch painters and collections of porcelain items, paintings, sculptures and modern art. In total, the collection consists of approximately 700,000 objects. The museum also has an art library that is open to the public and academics.

Nationalmuseum holds the largest collection of portrait miniatures in the world, with more than 5,200 works. The collection features miniatures from many European schools, including works by Nicholas Hilliard, Isaac Oliver and Louis-Marie Autissier. A significant portion of the collection derives from the master collector , while the more exclusive works were donated by Hjalmar Wicander, a cork-factory owner. Wicander also donated funds for additional purchases of miniatures.

Notable works

File:Pietro Perugino - St Sebastian - WGA17313.jpg, Perugino, ''St. Sebastian''
File:The Lawyer, possibly Ulrich Zasius, 1461-1536, humanist, jurist (Giuseppe Arcimboldo) - Nationalmuseum - 15897.tif, Giuseppe Arcimboldo, ''The Lawyer'', possibly Ulrich Zasius (1461-1536)
File:Manlius Torquatus Fighting a Gaul.jpg, Ludwig Refinger, ''Manlius Torquatus Fighting a Gaul''
File:Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn - "The Kitchen Maid" - Google Art Project.jpg, Rembrandt, ''The Kitchen Maid''
File:Rembrandt Simeon’s Song of Praise.jpg, Rembrandt, ''Simeon's Song of Praise''
File:Joos de Momper IcarusFXD.jpg, Joos de Momper, ''Landscape with the Fall of Icarus''
File:The Holy Family by Candlelight (Jacob Jordaens) - Nationalmuseum - 18772.tif, Jacob Jordaens, ''The Holy Family by Candlelight''
File:Boy playing the Flute (Judith Leyster) - Nationalmuseum - 18123.tif, Judith Leyster, ''Boy Playing the Flute''
File:Marble busts in Room 1280, the Sculpture Courtyard. Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, Sweden.jpg, Marble busts in the sculpture courtyard
File:Antoine Watteau - The Love Lesson - Google Art Project.jpg, Antoine Watteau, ''The Love Lesson'', -1717
File:Rabbit and Copper Pot (Jean Siméon Chardin) - Nationalmuseum - 17788.tif, Jean Siméon Chardin, ''Rabbit and Copper Pot''
File:François Boucher - The Triumph of Venus - Google Art Project.jpg, François Boucher, '' The Triumph of Venus''
File:The Lady with the Veil (the Artist's Wife) (Alexander Roslin) - Nationalmuseum - 21152FXD.jpg, Alexander Roslin, '' The Lady with the Veil''
File:Marie Antoinette-children-1785-6-Wertmuller.jpg, Adolf Ulrik Wertmüller, ''Queen Marie Antoinette of France and two of her Children Walking in The Park of Trianon'', 1785
File:The Cellist (Self-portrait) (Gustave Courbet) - Nationalmuseum - 20159.tif, Gustave Courbet,''The Cellist (Self-portrait)'', 1847
File:Auguste Renoir - La Grenouillère - Google Art Project.jpg, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, ''La grenouillère''
File:Castles in the Air (Anders Zorn) - Nationalmuseum - 24345.tif, Anders Zorn, ''Castles in the Air'', 1885
File:Paul Gauguin Bretagne 1889.JPG, Paul Gauguin, '' Fields by the Sea'', 1889
File:Hanna Pauli - Frukostdags.JPG, Hanna Pauli, ''Frukostdags''
File:Still Life with Plaster Cupid (Paul Cézanne) - Nationalmuseum - 19606.tif, Paul Cézanne, ''Still Life with Plaster Cupid''
File:Interior with a Reading Lady (Vilhelm Hammershøi) - Nationalmuseum - 18752.tif, Vilhelm Hammershøi, ''Interior with a Reading Lady'',
File:Alexander Roslin - King Gustav III of Sweden and his Brothers - Google Art Project.jpg, Alexander Roslin, '' King Gustav III of Sweden and His Brothers''
File:Gustaf Cederström - Bringing Home the Body of King Karl XII of Sweden - Google Art Project.jpg, Gustaf Cederström, '' Bringing Home the Body of King Charles XII''
File:Norwegian Mountain Landscape (Johan Christian Dahl) - Nationalmuseum - 19981.tif, Johan Christian Dahl, ''Norwegian Mountain Landscape''

Drawings

The collection of drawings contains approximately 500,000 sheets spanning the late medieval period to about 1900. The collection includes more than 2,000 Old Master drawings collected by Carl Gustaf Tessin. The sheets were acquired at the sale of the court banker Pierre Crozat in the summer of 1741. Tessin was one of 14 collectors who bought at bargain prices. Because of financial reasons, the collection was sold to King Adolf Fredrik.

File:Dürer - Bildnis eines jungen Mädchen.jpg, Albrecht Dürer, ''Portrait of a Young Woman with Braided Hair,'' 1515
File:Ghirlandaio.jpg, Domenico Ghirlandaio, ''Head of an Old Man,''
File:Hendrik Goltzius - Self-portrait.jpg, Hendrick Goltzius, ''Self-Portrait,'' –91

See also

* List of museums in Stockholm
* List of national galleries
* Hallwyl Palace
* Swedish Museum of National Antiquities

References

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External links

National Museum of Fine ArtsVirtual tour of the Nationalmuseum
provided by Google Arts & Culture
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{{Authority control

Buildings and structures completed in 1866
1792 in art
Art museums and galleries established in the 1790s
Buildings and structures completed in 1792
Educational organizations established in 1792
Art museums and galleries in Stockholm
National museums of Sweden
1792 establishments in Sweden
World's fair architecture in Stockholm
Sweden
18th-century establishments in Stockholm