Sara-Vide Ericson

Contemporary painter and printmaker Sara-Vide Ericson has been described as one of the most influential Swedish artists of her generation. Ericson’s work usually consists of large figurative oil paintings, inspired by her immediate environment in the shape of her beloved horses and the nature surrounding her: the forests, rivers, and marshes of the northern province Hälsingland (Latin: Helsingia), the sparsely populated rural region from her childhood, to which she returned (with her husband and daughter) in 2015.

Ericson’s large-scale compositions often focus on the human experience and its relationship to places, artefacts, and rituals. In her artistic practice Ericson re-enacts experiences, thoughts, fantasies, desires, and dreams. The process begins by selecting a location in which to perform, in solitude, an action or a composition; to feel the icy waters, to smell the pine, to sense the moss under the feet, or the texture of granite on bare skin. Ericson then revisits the place to photograph it, often with her sister as her intermediary in the composition. The artist then uses these photographs, along with her sensory memories, as the foundation for the painterly process. Blurring the lines between reality and fiction, Ericson allows the viewer to step into her being through her urgent and sometimes haunting narratives. The large-scale works are often characterised by a tactile, almost sculptural, quality as a result of Ericson’s technique. The artist has described her work along the lines of:

representational or figurative oil painting, at least from a distance. Because when you get closer, the larger image breaks up into an expressive, violent puzzle of colour, with traces of a frenzied stroking of the brush and other tools. […] Sometimes I also spray the paint so that it builds up physicality and volume and can rise up from the canvases like a topography.

Ericson studied at the Idun Lovén Art School, Stockholm (2002-2004), before moving on to the Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm (2004-2009), where she received much attention for her graduation show, She Wolf, at Galleri Mejan, Stockholm. Since then Ericson has consolidated her reputation as an artist through several important exhibitions in Scandinavia, Europe, the United States, and Asia. Much talked about recent shows include the group exhibition After the Sun-Forecasts from the North (Buffalo AKG Art Museum, Buffalo, NY, U.S.A., 26 April-19 August 2024) and the solo exhibitions Desire of the Tail (Institut Suédois/Swedish Institute, Paris, 17 October 2023-18 February 2024) and Subterranean Hunger (Gammel Strand, Copenhagen, 22 May-31 August 2025).

Ericson is represented by Galleri Magnus Karlsson in Stockholm, a collaboration begun with the solo presentation, Rida/Ride, at Market Art Fair, Stockholm, in 2010. She has since then had three further major exhibitions (Liar, 2010; While Unconscious, 2012; and Fermenting, 2016), as well as one smaller (The Basement Drawings, 2013) at the gallery. In 2011, Ericson was chosen (by curators Robert Storr and Francesca Pietrapaolo) to exhibit (along with other Nordic artists like Cecilia Edefalk, Gunnel Wåhlstrand, Tal R, etc.) in North by New York: New Nordic Art at Scandinavia House in New York. In the fall of 2014 Ericson, for the first time, exhibited with Danish gallery V1, Copenhagen, and in 2015 she began a collaboration with the New York gallery Albertz Benda, where she has participated in two curated group exhibitions, Empire of the Senseless (2015) and like.ness (2016).

The fall of 2014 also saw the premiere of Jacob Frössén’s (born 1975, Swedish director and cinematographer who followed Ericson’s work for several years during the making of the film) documentary film, Sara-Vide Ericson, on Swedish national television, SVT, as part of the corporation’s K Special series. Around this time Ericson was also awarded the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts’ 2013 Simone de Dardel Grant, one of numerous grants and scholarships awarded to Ericson between 2006 and 2020.

Ericson has exhibited in leading Swedish institutions and museums like, for instance, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Stockholm (Interior Ambush, 2019); Kalmar Art Museum, Kalmar, Sweden (Interior Ambush, 2020); Hälsingland Museum, Hudiksvall, Sweden (Interior Ambush, 2020); and Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm (Något mörkt ställde sig vid våra sinnens fem trösklar utan att gå över dem, with Tilda Lovell, 2023). Between 2021 and 2022 Ericson’s touring exhibition Ditch Dance also visited the following: Skellefteå konsthall, Sara kulturhus, Skellefteå, Sweden; Lidköpings konsthall, Lidköping, Sweden; andKulturhuset Stadsteatern, Stockholm.

In 2025 it was announced that the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat had chosen Ericson to be part of the Canada-Sweden Arctic Ocean 2025 expedition (9 August-19 September 2025), onboard the icebreaker Oden, which (together with the Canadian icebreaker CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent) would map the seabed in the Arctic Ocean, within the framework of the UNCLOS program (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea). According to the press release, Ericson would participate in the expedition to collect material for her large-scale paintings: ‘a unique opportunity to combine artistic creation with the extreme environment of the Arctic. Inspired by the ice, the landscape, and human presence, her work explores Arctic identity through staged imagery and emotional interpretation, adding a creative dimension to the science.’

Even though still fairly young, Ericson is represented in several prestigious public and private collections. Among these could be mentioned Moderna Museet, Stockholm; Statens konstråd/Public Art Agency, Sweden; Uppsala Art Museum, Uppsala, Sweden; Kalmar Art Museum, Kalmar, Sweden; Gävleborg County Museum, Gävle, Sweden; Museum of Jönköping, Jönköping, Sweden; Bollnäs Art Museum, Bollnäs, Sweden; the Pizzuti Collection, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A.; the Ståhl Collection, Norrköping, Sweden; and the Firestorm Foundation Collection.

Ericsson’s solo exhibitions include Bollnäs Art Museum, Bollnäs, Sweden (2007); The Museum of Hälsingland, Hudiksvall, Sweden (2007); She Wolf, Graduation exhibition, Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm (2008); She Wolf, Galleri Granen, Sundsvall, Sweden (2009); Rida/Ride, Market Art Fair, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2010); Liar, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2010); While Unconscious, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2012); While Unconscious, Gävleborg County Museum, Gävle, Sweden (2013); The Basement Drawings, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2013); Hidden Beings, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2014); Utmarker, Bollnäs Konsthall, Sweden (2015); Fermenting, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2016); Dark White, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2016); Vacuum, Örebro Konsthall, Örebro, Sweden (2017); The Marsh Report, Bror Hjorts Hus, Uppsala, Sweden (2018); Obsolete Decoy, Eighteen Gallery, Copenhagen (2019); Interior Ambush, Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Stockholm (2019); Interior Ambush, Kalmar Art Museum, Kalmar, Sweden (2020); Interior Ambush, Hälsingland Museum, Hudiksvall, Sweden (2020); Navigating Ancient Consequences, Eighteen Gallery, Copenhagen (2020); Ditch Dance, Skellefteå konsthall, Sara kulturhus, Skellefteå, Sweden (2021); Ditch Dance, Lidköpings konsthall, Lidköping, Sweden (2022); Ditch Dance,Kulturhuset Stadsteatern, Stockholm (2022); Dirt Bridge, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2022); Något mörkt ställde sig vid våra sinnens fem trösklar utan att gå över dem (with Tilda Lovell), Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm (2023); Desire of the Tail, Institut Suédois/Swedish Institute, Paris (2023-2024) and Subterranean Hunger, Gammel Strand, Copenhagen (2025).

Some of the selected group exhibitions that Ericson have participated in include Länssalong, Jönköping County Museum, Jönköping, Sweden (2005); Group exhibition, Huluboda Art Association, Jönköping, Sweden (2005); Länssalong, Jönköping County Museum, Jönköping, Sweden (2006); Spring exhibition, Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm (2006); Forum Återväxt, Stockholm (2006); Ex Archive, BFA exhibition, Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm (2007); Teckning/Drawing, Sandvikens Konsthall, Sandviken, Sweden (2007); Final Exhibition, MFA exhibition, Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm (2009); The Platform, Röda Sten, Gothenburg, Sweden (2010); Idag är igår imorgon/Today is yesterday tomorrow, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2010); Jubileumsutställning, Ljungbergmuseet, Ljungby, Sweden (2010); Frieze Art Fair, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, London (2010); My name is not Susan, Norrtälje konsthall, Norrtälje, Sweden (2010); Lust och Last, Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, Sweden (2011); The Armory Show, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, New York, NY, U.S.A. (2011); North by New York: New Nordic Art, Scandinavia House, New York, NY, U.S.A. (2011); Eorum Sanai (Ice Man), Arario Gallery, Seoul (2012); Falling from Grace, Kunsthalle Rostock, Rostock, Germany (2012); Chart Art fair, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Copenhagen (2013); Time Waits For Us, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2013); Volta10, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2014); 2014-En aktuell utställning/2014-an exhibition of current interest, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2014); Coming up from Underground, Alma Löv Museum, Östra Ämtervik, Sweden (2014); VOLTA10 Basel, V1 Gallery, Basel, Switzerland (2014); Chart Art Fair, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Copenhagen (2014); Landstingets Kulturstipendiater 2014, Offkonsten! c/o Teatergalleriet, Uppsala, Sweden (2014); Konstspår, Bollnäs Museum, Bollnäs, Sweden (2015); Empire of the Senseless, Friedman Benda, New York, NY, U.S.A. (2015); 13, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2015); This Just In: New Acquisitions, Pizzuzi Collection, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A. (2015); Chart Art Fair, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Copenhagen (2015); Från Hallström till Hammoud, Gävleborg County Museum, Gävle, Sweden (2015-2016); like-ness, Albertz Benda, New York, NY, U.S.A. (2016); Luftslottet, Norrköping Art Museum, Norrköping, Sweden (2016); SWEDISH ART: NOW!, Sven-Harrys konstmuseum, Stockholm (2016); Frieze Art Fair NY, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, New York, NY, U.S.A. (2016); Jag ser ett mörker/I See a Darkness, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Hellvi Kännungs, Gotland, Sweden (2016); Norrland, Kulturens Hus, Luleå, Sweden (2016); Hälsingekonst, Ljusdalsbygdens Museum, Ljusdal, Sweden (2016); One Day Real Rain Will Come and Wash the Scum off the Streets, Nordic Contemporary, Paris (2016); Chart Art Fair, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Copenhagen (2017); Chart Art Fair, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2017); Art Berlin, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Berlin (2017); Frieze Art Fair NY, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, New York, NY, U.S.A. (2017); Cries and Whispers, Trafo Kunsthall, Oslo (2018); Stockholm Calling, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Asia House, London (2018); MINE II, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2018); Främlingar/Strangers, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Hellvi Kännungs, Gotland, Sweden (2019); The Birds, Chart Art Fair, V1 Gallery, Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen (2019); MINE III, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2019); Artifacts, Nevven Gallery, Gothenburg, Sweden (2019); Föreställningar om naturen, Västerås Art Museum, Västerås, Sweden (2020); Träden står ljust gröna: Landskapsmåleri då och nu/The Trees, Light Green: Landscape Painting – Past and Present, Bonniers konsthall, Stockholm (2020); Intermezzo, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2020); Stilla liv/Still Life, Galleri Magnus Karlsson,Hellvi Kännungs, Gotland, Sweden (2020); Samlingen, Ståhl Collection, Norrköping, Sweden (2020); Today’s Special #2, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2020); Today’s Special #4, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2020) Mine IV, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2020-2021); Vår Himmel Röd/Our Red Sky, Göteborgs konsthall, Gothenburg, Sweden (2020-2021); Summer Group Show, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2021); Källan/The Spring, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2022); V1 Gallery XX - Twenty years of V1 Gallery, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2022); Showroom Presentation October-November, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2023); Landscaping: Mötet mellan människa och natur, Uppsala Art museum, Uppsala, Sweden (2023); After the Sun-Forecasts from the North, Buffalo AKG Art Museum, Buffalo, NY, U.S.A. (2024); I måleriets spår, Ståhl Collection, Norrköping, Sweden (2024); After the Sun, Gammel Strand, Copenhagen (2024-2025); That’s What’s Up!, Trotoar, Zagreb, Croatia (2024-2025); En linjär chimär-300 år av svensk konst, Norrköping Art Museum, Norrköping, Sweden (2024-2025); Landscapes, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen (2025); Summer Group Show, Galleri Magnus Karlsson, Stockholm (2025) and Träet talar-en utställning med trä som material, motiv och metod, Public Art Agency, Sweden (2025-2026).

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