Konstsamlaren Gustaf Adolf Sparre och Sparreska våningen i Göteborg

Abstract

Summary Gustaf Adolf Sparre—Art Collector and his chambers in Gothenburg In 1963 the City Fathers of Gothenburg granted funds for the restoration of the so‐called Sparre chambers situated in the Sahlgren House at Norra Hamngatan 14. This house was erected in 1753 by Mrs Brigitta Sahlgren, who belonged to the richest family in Gothenburg at this time and was grandmother of the later owner Count Gustaf Adolf Sparre (1745–1794). At the age of 22 he made a Grand Tour of England, Belgium, the Netherlands and France (1768–1772). In the cities he visited, he tried to go to the churches and monasteries because they were open to the public and functioned in the same way as museums with their priceless art treasures. Sparre learned to appreciate the various styles in the paintings he saw, and by associating and talking with amateurs like William Chambers, Gustaf Filip Creutz, Jacob Jonas Björnståhl, Johan Henrik Lidén, as well as with museum keepers and other art collectors, he gradually became a connoisseur and could confidently pick out the paintings he wanted from the numerous art markets. Sparre made sure, from notes in his diary, that the paintings he bought were dispatched to Gothenburg. After Sparre's return in 1772 he modernised the Sahlgren mansion he inherited from his grandmother. He furnished two drawing‐rooms on the upper floor, and had them decorated with wood panels and carvings. Some areas of the walls were covered with silk and enhanced by gilt baguette mouldings, and these rooms became his art gallery. The elegance of these chambers indicated that Sparre availed himself of the architect and decorators appointed to the King in Stockholm. Furnishings of comparable quality are to be found there and at Övedskloster Palace, Skåne, which was built by Sparre's father‐in‐law, Baron Hans Ramel. Seventy‐seven paintings remain today of Sparre's collection and they were until 1978 entailed property of Count Gustaf Wachtmeister, Vanås Palace, Skåne. A great part of the collection consists of small paintings depicting labourers in roistering, convivial mood; several of them are painted by David Teniers the Younger. Another group comprises Biblical themes, such as Jan Lieven's “St. Paul” and “The Crucifixion” by Van Dyck. Other groups consist of landscapes, domestic scenes, portraits such as “The Young Jew” by Rembrandt in 1632, and “Old Rabbi wearing Red Hat” in 1651, equine paintings by Philip Wouwerman and P. J. de Lou‐therbourg as well as paintings of flowers and birds by Petr Casteels and M. d'Hondecoete. During the twenty years the Sparre Gallery has existed in Gothenburg, it has been viewed by several prominent art critics and connoisseurs. Like the private galleries in Paris and London Sparre's collections were open to prominent art lovers and it functioned as a sort of art museum in Gothenburg two hundred years ago.