Hilma af Klint, August Strindberg and other visionaries
In the spring of 2023, all eyes will be on the far north. We know Sweden mainly for its pragmatism, great engineers and entrepreneurs. But there is an important yet lesser known aspect of the nation’s spiritual life, visible in its art and literature. Bozar is therefore staging an exhibition that brings together a number of figureheads from the Swedish art scene. Mysticism and esoteric speculation runs like a thread through their work.
We will be showing work by some of the country’s most important literary figures, from the 18th-century Emanuel Swedenborg to the turn of the 20th century with August Strindberg, who is known as a writer but who also created wonderful drawings and paintings. In the same period, we find visual art by visionaries such as C.F. Hill, Ernst Josephson and Hilma af Klint.
Hilma af Klint dreamed of a spiral-shaped building to house her most important works, the so-called Paintings for the Temple with as many as 193 works. During her lifetime, that dream never materialised, the temple remained an imaginary creation - until now. Bozar reached back to her notebooks and built a VR installation of Hilma's vision in the exhibition, conceived by Stolpe Publishing and Acute Art.
Up to this day, these visions continue to inspire contemporary artists like Carsten Höller, Christine Ödlund, Daniel Youssef, Cecilia Edefalk and Lars Olof Loeld.
By courtesy of the Hilma af Klint Foundation. © Anders Fredriksén
Anna Cassel, No. 7, 1913, oil on canvas
Courtesy CF HILL
Christine Ödlund, Psychedelic Botanist IV (Emanuel Swedenborg), 2022, ink, pen, plantpigment and watercolour on paper
Courtesy CF HILL
By courtesy of the Hilma af Klint Foundation. Photo: The Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Hilma af Klint, Altarpiece, Group X, no.1, 1915, oil and metal leaf on canvas, HaK 187.
Courtesy of the artist
Daniel Youssef, Neon writing ’Swedish Ecstasy’, 2022, neon and glass mounted on acrylic, electric cord with socket and transformer
Hilma af Klint, The Swan, No. 12, The SUW Series, Group IX, 1915, oil on canvas. Courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
By courtesy of the Hilma af Klint Foundation. © Anders Fredriksén
Anna Cassel, No. 7, 1913, oil on canvas
Courtesy CF HILL
Christine Ödlund, Psychedelic Botanist IV (Emanuel Swedenborg), 2022, ink, pen, plantpigment and watercolour on paper
Courtesy CF HILL
By courtesy of the Hilma af Klint Foundation. Photo: The Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Hilma af Klint, Altarpiece, Group X, no.1, 1915, oil and metal leaf on canvas, HaK 187.
Courtesy of the artist
Daniel Youssef, Neon writing ’Swedish Ecstasy’, 2022, neon and glass mounted on acrylic, electric cord with socket and transformer
Hilma af Klint, The Swan, No. 12, The SUW Series, Group IX, 1915, oil on canvas. Courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
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Dates
Location
BOZAR/Centre for Fine Arts
Rue Ravenstein 23 1000 BRUSSELSNew! Combiticket for Michel François and Swedish Ecstasy. For €20 you can now visit both exhibitions. Book your combiticket here.
The Virtual Reality experience is included in your ticket. You'll find the VR at the end of the exhibition.
The minimum recommended age to experience VR is 12.
Exhibition catalogue 'Swedish Ecstasy. Hilma af Klint, August Strindberg & other Visionaries'
Published by Bozar Books - Mercatorfonds
English version, 208 pages. Price 40 €
For sale at the Bozar Bookshop by Walter König. Only available in English.
Rates
Standard
€ 14
< 30 year
€ 7
>65 year
€ 12
< 12 year
€ 0
museumPASSmusées
€ 0
ICOM
€ 0
Carte press / Perskaarten : VVJ, AJP, IFJ, API-IPA, AICA
€ 0
Carte PROF | Lerarenkaart - Klasse
€ 7
Brussels Card
€ 0
BIM/VT Card
€ 7
EU Disability card
€ 7
Wheelchair
€ 0
Companion wheelchair
€ 0
National Lottery Club
€ 12
Thalys Club & Club +
€ 7
Conseil d'Administration | Raad van Bestuur
€ 0
Related events
Guided Tours
Education
Secondary Education
Higher Education
Interactive guided tour - Swedish Ecstacy
Talks & Debates
Literature
Dominique De Groen meets Hilma af Klint
Talks & Debates
Literature
Jeroen Olyslaegers meets Hilma af Klint
Watch ✕ Read ✕ Listen
Take it differently, take it slowly, take it consciously
See also
Production
Partners
Support
- Vlaamse Overheid
- Belgian Federal Public Service, Foreign Affairs, Foreign trade & Development Cooperation
- NextGenerationEU
- IASPIS Konstnärsnämden, The Swedish Arts Grants Committee’s International Programme for Visual and Applied Arts
- ArdAzAei
Structural partner