KunstenaarSwedish
Bertil Widbrandt
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Ducks breaking from water, wings still half-folded - Bertil Widbrandt returned to this moment again and again throughout his career. The sudden lift, the spray, the particular light of a Swedish lake in low season: these were the subjects that defined his output and earned him a reputation as one of Sweden's sharper wildlife painters.
Widbrandt was born on 10 April 1914 in Malmö. He trained at the Slöjdföreningens skola in Gothenburg, a school with a strong tradition of applied craft and design, before undertaking several study trips across Europe - to Yugoslavia, Italy, Switzerland, and France. These travels broadened his painterly vocabulary without pulling him away from the Swedish landscape he returned to throughout his working life.
His range was wider than the wildlife subjects he is best remembered for. He painted portraits, flower still lifes, and landscapes, working in clear, direct colors with an approach that felt grounded in observation rather than interpretation. But it was the animal paintings - birds in particular - that set him apart from contemporaries working in similar territory. He painted with what critics described as a softer, more atmospheric handling of nature, which gave his wildlife scenes a quality of stillness even when depicting movement.
Widbrandt also worked as an illustrator, contributing drawings to the press during his career. He participated in group exhibitions in several Swedish towns, including Uddevalla, Karlskrona, and Tingsryd. He died on 25 January 1989 in Sollentuna.
At auction, all 34 items recorded for Widbrandt on Auctionist are classified as paintings, with none currently active. His works appear at regional Swedish houses - RA Auktionsverket Norrköping, Örebro Stadsauktioner, Helsingborgs Auktionskammare, Karlstad Hammarö Auktionsverk, and Formstad Auktioner each account for a significant share of sales. Realized prices have been modest, ranging from around 250 to 795 SEK, with the highest result for a still life and the second-highest for a duck-lifting composition. His work occupies the accessible end of the Swedish wildlife painting market, suited to buyers who value regional naturalist painting.