art darts: Helene Schjerfbeck--See this great show; as for he...

art darts: Helene Schjerfbeck--See this great show; as for he...: Helene Schjerbeck Self-Portrait 1915 A friend in Haarlem  commanded me to go to the Geementemuseum in the  Hague and see an exhibitio...

Helene Schjerfbeck--See this great show; as for her name--just forget the j and it is easy to say

Helene Schjerbeck Self-Portrait 1915

A friend in Haarlem commanded me to go to the Geementemuseum in the  Hague and see an exhibition of paintings by Helene Schjerfbeck. That was 11 years ago. Ruud  has a terrific eye and is not given to pronouncements of this kind. On the contrary. I got it. This was important. I went. It certainly was and is. I had never heard of her. She has not become widely famous since. She ought to be. Schjerfbeck (1862-1946) has been justly famous in Finland since she was in her teens. From the point of view of the rest of us, art news from a country with a population half the size of London or New York does not travel even at a snail's pace--especially when most of the artist's work is in museums and therefore lacks the drive of dealers to make reputations/money.  Let's hope that with the current exhibition at the Royal Academy in London will change this.  Whether it does or not, do not miss the show if you possibly can see it.  You are not likely to soon have another chance to see her work; to see so many memorable, touching and beautiful paintings. 
 The 2008 show in the Hague had travelled from Hamburg and was on its way to the Museum of Modern Art in Paris. The story about the artist which I wrote for The Economist was published to appear when the show in Paris opened.  It was better done in the Netherlands where in one large space was devoted only to her self portraits arranged chronologically. The RA has done the same. For these alone a visit to the London show  is more than worthwhile  Let's hope that New York, Washington, Boston, San Francisco wake up.                                                                                                                                                           

 What follows. Alas the print is too small but I remain technically challenged and cannot work out how to enlarge it without making running over the margins. For you it will be easy. An do not hesitate to send me message if you wish to educate me about how to make the post easier to read. Please.