Nils Andersson’s painting Heimdal Returns Brisingamen to Freya is an evocative example of the images of ancient Swedish history painted in the mid-19th century, combining the modern and the ancient, classical antiquity and Norse mythology. The motif was chosen by the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts as the theme of its subject-painting competition in 1846. The Academy chose a different theme each year for the contest, in which students competed to win a generous travel scholarship.
This painting was Andersson’s entry in the Academy’s 1846 subject-painting competition. Comparison with the other contenders from that year offers an unusually good opportunity to identify how the individual artist has approached the motif. Like a stage or film director, the artist has, in the course of his work, had to make decisions regarding poses, gestures and facial expressions. It may be a question of how the figures are positioned in the space and in relation to each other. Another question concerns props and other figures. The entries in the subject-painting competition also have to be considered in the light of what was at stake for the young artists. An ambitious, detailed composition was one way for them to show off their skills.
Heimdal Returns Brisingamen to Freya is representative of a genre that has attracted little interest for the longest time. In future, Nationalmuseum intends to display more 19th-century historical subject-painting, which was once a major component of the Swedish art scene. This new acquisition is another important contribution to our understanding of 19th-century art.