My Late Wife

My Late Wife was painted in 1884, a work whose title has prompted some scholarly discussion — Carl Larsson married Karin Bergöö in 1883, and the ironic title may refer to a fictional 'late wife' within a narrative game, or it may carry a more melancholy register. The panel support is significant: painting on panel was a more archaic choice that carried associations with sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Dutch and Flemish interior painting — a visual tradition Larsson was consciously invoking as he developed his domestic genre subjects. The pun or ambiguity in the title suggests Larsson's characteristic wit, which frequently appeared in the texts accompanying his illustrated books. By 1884 he was working intensively on domestic subjects that would eventually feed into the celebrated book series, and this painting belongs to that productive period of subject consolidation. The Nationalmuseum's holding of this work ensures it remains accessible alongside the larger body of Larsson's domestic output.

Panel support with careful, detailed handling appropriate to the medium's tradition. The painting surface would be smoother than canvas, encouraging more precise description of interior details. The palette and handling reflect Larsson's mid-1880s style, brighter than his Grez period but not yet fully committed to the linearity of his mature manner.