Ivar Johnsson – Bronze Sculpture – Kungen Rider Eriksgata – Swedish

$4,200

Cast in dark-patinated bronze, this sculpture depicts a mounted king wrapped in a heavy, wind-swept cloak. His horse is caught mid-stride with head turned and mane lifting: a study in movement built from a deliberately rough, hand-modeled surface that catches light across every fold of drapery and muscle. The subject is the Eriksgata, the traditional circuit a newly elected medieval Swedish king rode through the country’s provinces to be acknowledged by regional assemblies, a theme Johnsson returned to in several cast versions. The underside is hollow-cast in the cire perdue (lost-wax) method, and the base is incised “I.J.” alongside the stamped foundry mark.

Ivar Johnsson (Swedish, 1885–1970) trained in Paris before returning to Sweden, where he developed an expressive, classically rooted style often compared to that of Carl Milles. As an instructor at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, he introduced the school’s first coursework on materials science for sculpture, and went on to collaborate with prominent architects on major public commissions, including facade sculpture for the Royal Institute of Technology and reliefs for the Stockholm City Library.