Louis, Greve Sparre

Born in Italy as Luigi Pietro Sparre af Söfdeborg, he was the son of the Swedish inventor Count Ambjörn Sparre (who produced the country’s first issue of stamps) and an Italian mother. Louis spent his first years in Italy until his mother’s early death in an accident in 1867. He then spent most of his youth with his grandmother in Karlskrona in Sweden. In 1877, he joined the navy as a cadet but soon started to develop an interest in art. He enrolled in the evening school of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts. After graduating from high school, he moved to Paris and studied at the Académie Julian from 1887-90. In Paris, he also met Anders Zorn, the most famous Swedish painter of the time and had his debut at the salon in 1888.

In 1889, Sparre travelled to Finland and developed a liking for the country and for Karelia in particular. He exhibited motifs from the country at the French salons and eventually moved to Finland, where he lived until 1908. There, he became known for his works influenced by Art Nouveau and the national romantic movement. In 1903, he married the daughter of Baron Gustaf Mannerheim, the future Marshal of Finland, and had two sons. Together with his wife, Sparre founded two companies producing ceramics and furniture in the town of Porvoo and later textiles in Helsinki. In 1907, he co-directed the first Finnish film, titled The Secret Liquor Drinkers.

After his return to Sweden, Sparre abandoned crafts production and focused on painting and graphics. On one of his frequent travels, he accompanied his friend Anders Zorn to North Africa in 1912. Two years later, he designed his own villa in Gotland, where he spent his summers for the next 30 years. During this time, many of his drawings and watercolours showed motifs from the island. Sparre remained active well into his 90s and opened his own gallery with a solo exhibition at the age of 99.

Sparre was chairman of the Graphic Society (1918-21), the Artists’ Club (1923-24 and 1929-30), of the Swedish Artists’ Association (1927-29), and of the Swedish section of the Nordic Graphic Artists’ Union (1937-39). He was made a Knight of the Order of the North Star and a Commander of the Order of Vasa. He was also appointed Commander of the Order of the White Rose of Finland and was made Knight of the French Legion of Honour.

At the age of almost 49, he was a member of the Swedish fencing team at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, where he was eliminated in round two of the individual épée competition and placed fourth with the Swedish épée team, losing on bouts in the final round.