'' (
snowdrop), made in Paris 1881 as
plaster cast and exhibited there the same year; here a copy from 1953 cast in bronze by C & A Nicci (Rome/Italy) placed in Rottneros Park near
Sunne in
Värmland/Sweden.
Snöklockan (Snowdrop, Paris 1881) The original French name was
La Perce-Neige (snow breaker) and it was first made in plaster cast for the 1881
Salon in Paris. Hasselberg's model was a 16-year-old Italian. At her feet shows a small snowdrop, and the statue was understood as a symbol of new life breaking through the snow in springtime.
Snöklocka actually is not the ordinary Swedish name for the flower, which is
snödroppe. It is a rare poetic name that historically was derived from a literal translation of the ordinary German name
Schneeglöckchen (little snowbell). Thus a musical connotation was added by using it for the statue, and her right hand is close to her right ear. The Snowdrop was not only accepted at the 1881 Salon, but even received an honorable mention, which no other Swedish work achieved that year. This success meant that Hasselberg suddenly was a famous artist in Sweden, where the
Nationalmuseum in Stockholm soon ordered a copy in marble. It was finished in 1883 and received a gold medal at the Salon in Paris the same year. In 1885, also the
Gothenburg Museum of Art had its marble copy. The
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek in
Copenhagen/Denmark has one since 1889. Copies in bronze at public places are on Maria Square (
Mariatorget)/Stockholm, in
Falun,
Ronneby, and near
Sunne (Rottneros park). 1,700 pieces in
parian ware (marble imitation) with a height of 50 cm and 625 pieces in 60 cm were produced in 1887-1926 by
Gustavsberg porcelain. The more recent reception of the Snowdrop in Sweden in the 21st century presented a new additive in the form of certain
feminist views. One author of the catalogue of the large Hasselberg
retrospective in Stockholm 2010 claimed that the closed eyes of the statue were not a sign of just waking up but rather showed that Hasselberg had
“forced” the
“body of the young woman” into a
“state of unconsciousness”. in Stockholm; plaster cast 1886 in Paris; here cast in bronze 1896 by Gruet Jeune in Paris.
Farfadern (Father’s Father, Paris 1886) The original French name was ''L'Aiëul'' (The Grandfather) and it was first made in plaster cast 1886 in Paris and exhibited at the
Palais de l'Industrie that year. The basic idea was to show nature's cycle containing the poles of young and old. It had its origin during Hasselberg's long treatment at university hospital in
Gothenburg in 1885, after which he learned that he had only a few more years to live. He knew, therefore, that the planned work might be his last one and thus his artistic testament. The idea became more definitive after he had seen an old man sitting with a naked sleeping boy on his knees on a boulevard in Paris. When it was finished, his artist friends were enthusiastic about it, but the exhibition in Paris was no success. The original copies in plaster cast by Hasselberg are lost, but a copy in bronze was placed near the
National Library of Sweden in Stockholm 1896, and a copy in marble also from 1896 is today in the
Gothenburg Museum of Art. in
Värmland, cast in bronze 1957.
Grodan (Frog, Paris 1889) Grodan (French
La Grenouille, English
The Frog) was made in plaster cast for the
Exposition Universelle (1889) in Paris and exhibited there. There is a frog between the knees of a girl. Hasselberg reported that the concept of this piece had spontaneously come up when a model in his studio during a break sat on the floor in this position to rest. The French word
grenouille does not only mean
frog but in slang also for
street girl. It is unknown if Hasselberg was aware of this second meaning, but it was commented that by this statue, he possibly wanted to express his time's view of a tension between the noble and the less noble sides of youth. Several copies in bronze are in public parks in Sweden and marble copies in museums. The most recent bronze copy from 2009 in
Ulricehamn replaced a stolen copy from the 1940s. 230 pieces in
parian ware (marble imitation) with a height of 38 cm and 241 pieces in 26 cm were produced in 1906-1926 by
Gustavsberg porcelain. (Italy) placed in Rottneros Park near
Sunne in
Värmland.
Näckrosen (Water Lily, Stockholm 1892) Näckrosen was first exhibited in plaster cast at the Danish art society
Kunstforeningen in
Copenhagen 1892 and later that year in Gothenburg/Sweden. In 1893, it was exhibited at the
World's Columbian Exposition in
Chicago. The statue shows a young woman lying on her back, floating on a large water lily leaf, surrounded by water lilies, and heads of old men symbolizing
mermen. The first part of the flower's name
näck in Scandinavia means
water spirit. So a literal translation of
Näckrosen would be
Water Spirit Rose. While this association is usually not present when talking about the flower, Hasselberg here made it unavoidable by the heads of old men in the water. On the backside of the statue, there is a tree stump that holds a chain with a large padlock, apparently indicating that the large water lily leaf was put on chain. == Gallery ==