His annual wages were sufficient to allow him to help support his parents financially.Īfter several years working as an illustrator of books, magazines, and newspapers, Larsson moved to Paris in 1877, where he spent several frustrating years as a hardworking artist without any success. In the meantime, Larsson worked as a caricaturist for the humorous paper Kasper and as a graphic artist for the newspaper Ny Illustrerad Tidning. Carl earned his first medal in nude drawing. There Larsson gained confidence, and even became a central figure in student life. In 1869, at the age of sixteen, he was promoted to the 'antique school' of the same academy. During his first years there, Larsson felt socially inferior, confused, and shy. However, at the age of thirteen, his teacher at the school for poor children urged him to apply to the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts, and he was admitted. In contrast, Carl's mother worked long hours as a laundress to provide for her family. Larsson portrays him as a loveless man lacking self-control he drank, ranted and raved, and incurred the lifelong anger of his son after an outburst in which he declared, 'I curse the day you were born'.

Larsson's father worked as a casual laborer, sailed as a stoker on a ship headed for Scandinavia, and lost the lease to a nearby mill, only to work there later as a mere grain carrier. His parents were extremely poor, and his childhood was not happy. Larsson was born in the Gamla stan neighborhood of Stockholm, Sweden. He is principally known for his watercolors of idyllic family life. His many paintings include oils, watercolors, and frescoes. Carl Olof Larsson was a Swedish painter representative of the Arts and Crafts movement.

Singoalla by Viktor Rydberg