There are some freakishly amazing postcards in this collection, I literally get lost each moment I spend going through it. Color lithographic postcards started appearing in Europe in the early 1900's. These below, addressed to Eric Holger Pearson in Krokom, Sweden (1905-1906) and sent from nearby Lit, Sweden, are truly works of art. Clearly influenced by what is known as Japonisme, each composition floats on a ground of warm gray tone. Like Japanese woodcuts of the late 19th century, the spacial content is reduced; color, contrast, line and asymmetry formally dominate overall. The high resolution detail reveals techniques similar to neo-impressionism, such as Georges Seurat's, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.
As we saw in recent posts, Holger's father at this time was stationed in logging camps outside Portland, OR. The translations below are challenging; postcard no. 3 reads, "Little Holger wondering how you are feeling now hope you're good..." After trying and failing miserably with Swedish to English interpretations, it's clear teams of interpreters will be needed to unravel the collections every detail. It is known that Holger's birth mother Kristina Erika Thilander, had been dead for three years when these were posted. He was being cared for by Kristina's sister, Ottolina Thilander. Five years would pass before the two would emigrate and reunite with Erik Andreas Persson in Portland, OR.
No. 1
No. 2
No. 3
Detail, no. 1
Top to bottom: Reverse sides of numbers 1, 2, 3.