ArtistSwedish
Tor Hörlin
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Tor Axel Hörlin was born on 11 August 1899 in the Adolf Fredrik parish of Stockholm, the son of Axel and Anna Hörlin. He began his art education at the Tekniska skolan and Althins painting school before enrolling at Konstakademien, where he studied from 1919 to 1923. Those years at the academy grounded him in figure composition and colour theory, and he went on to develop a style that balanced strong, clear colour planes with a mood-driven treatment of light.
In the 1920s and 1930s Hörlin painted urban motifs from Stockholm and Brussels with an intensity and graphic energy that shows an awareness of European modernism. Over time his work shifted toward quieter subjects - coastal landscapes, interiors, and still lifes - where simplified form and harmonic colour took precedence over drama. His compositions in oil and pastels carry a luminous, contemplative quality that kept him in demand with both collectors and public institutions.
For a sustained period Hörlin lived and worked in Arvika, Värmland, and it was through this connection that he received commissions for church restorations in the region. His wall paintings can be seen in Dalby and Sunne churches. Beyond ecclesiastical work, he carried out large-scale decorative projects at Karolinska Hospital, Västerås Crematorium, and glass, mosaic, and wall paintings at the Kockums mechanical workshop in Malmö - commissions that placed him among the productive generation of Swedish muralists active from the 1940s through the 1960s.
From 1947 to 1957 Hörlin served as principal instructor in decorative painting at Konstfackskolan, and from 1943 to 1949 he was a member of Sweden's National Arts Commission. These roles gave him significant influence over Swedish applied arts education during the postwar period. He also worked in colour lithography, producing prints such as the circus-themed series that appear among his auction records. His work is held by Nationalmuseum and Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Göteborgs konstmuseum, Malmö museum, Norrköpings konstmuseum, and Örebro läns museum.
Hörlin died on 12 January 1985 in Rebbelberga, Ängelholm. On the Swedish auction market his paintings, pastels and prints surface regularly at regional houses. Auction records in this database span works from the 1940s through the 1960s, with prices at the modest end - oils on canvas and panel have sold for around 150-2,200 SEK - reflecting the market for competent mid-century Swedish painters whose institutional presence outweighs their current auction profile. Houses including Metropol, Stockholms Auktionsverk Helsingborg and Crafoord Auktioner Malmö account for the majority of sales.