ArtistSwedish
Lars Larsson
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The name Lars Larsson is shared by two distinct Swedish craftsmen whose works both appear at auction under the same attribution, separated by roughly a century.
The earlier Lars Larsson (26 December 1820 - 8 October 1880) was a silversmith who trained under Johannes Daniel Blomsterwall in Gothenburg from 1834, becoming a journeyman in 1839. In 1843 he presented a gold brooch with stones as his masterpiece and was approved as a master silversmith in Stockholm on 23 August that year. He returned to Gothenburg in 1844 by renouncing his Stockholm guild membership, then operated from that city for the following decades. In 1869 he opened a Stockholm branch, running parallel workshops in both cities until his death. The firm Lars Larsson and Co. was also active in fine jewellery, producing pieces that combined imported Italian shell cameos with Greco-Roman motifs. Several works by this Lars Larsson are held in the collections of Nationalmuseum in Stockholm, including silver serving pieces and jewellery, and his hallmarked silver - soup ladles, presentation bowls, and konfektskålar from the 1850s and 1860s - continues to appear at regional Swedish auction houses.
The later Lars Larsson (born 1 September 1950) is a blacksmith and sculptor who lives and works in Örsjö in Småland, in the heart of the Swedish glasriket region. He holds both journeyman and master certificates in the blacksmithing profession and has run his own studio and forge, Lars Larsson Konstsmide, since 1978. His work is grounded in traditional smithing techniques - forge, hammer, and anvil - but oriented toward sculptural expression. He is particularly associated with animal sculptures in wrought and patinated iron, above all bulls, which recur across his output in various sizes and surface treatments. He also produces candlesticks, bowls, wall pieces, and commissions for public spaces, churches, municipalities, and regional bodies. His work is distributed internationally through Norway Designs and has been shown at exhibitions across Sweden and Norway. He has collaborated with artists including Erik Höglund, Bertil Vallien, and Carl-Fredrik Reuterswärd, and his work is represented in the collections of the Swedish National Art Council.
At auction, the two Lars Larssons are frequently listed under the same name. Silver items dated to the mid-19th century typically refer to the Gothenburg silversmith, while iron sculptures of bulls signed 'L. Larsson' are the work of the contemporary craftsman from Örsjö.