IN Sweden, as elsewhere, the latter half of the nineteenth century brought about a brighter period for the Art of the Book as regards typography, quality of paper, and binding. Still the decay had hardly been as great as in other branches of decoration and handicraft. Two publishing firms, P. A. Norstedt, Stockholm, and Berling, Lund, have maintained a high standard of book-making. On the other hand, a more artistic character was adopted between 1870 and 1880 by using traditional means, by imitating Gothic manuscripts, or by a somewhat arbitrary use of Old Northern ornamental art. The renaissance, which in Sweden burst forth at the beginning of the nineties, originated in a revival of interest in the decorative arts, especially in the textiles of the Viking and Saga periods. The Old Northern spirit ran like an undercurrent through the life of the whole country, and culminated in Artur Hazelius's epoch-making museum work, Skansen and the Northern Museum. Just at the right moment there was added a practical study of modern book-making in England and on the Continent. A whole generation was seized by the new ideas which were proclaimed with such power by William Morris.
To initiate a movement, combining as it does artistic and practical
PAGE FROM “A HISTORY OF SWEDISH WOODCUTS.” ORNAMENTS BY ARTUR SAHLÉN. PRINTED BY NORSTEDT UND SÖNER knowledge, a passionate idealist is required. Such an idealist is Waldemar Zachrisson, a printer of Gothenburg (born 1861). He studied in Sweden and at the best printing firms in Hamburg, Leipzig, Vienna, Berlin, and St. Petersburg, and developed his taste by constant study of the masterpieces of great times and the new English and American fine printing practised by Morris and De Vinne. As soon as he had secured his own great business he began to work for the raising of the whole trade. He founded a union of experts, “Allmänna Svenska Boktrycka-reföreningen” (Swedish Printers' Society), which worked for the establishment of the Museum of Industrial Art in Stockholm and the Technical School for Industrial Art in Gothenburg. In a number of ways, through artistic advertisements and articles in the trade papers, he tried to prepare the ground for a higher standard in the printing-trade generally, and his distinct practical outlook made his efforts eminently successful.
Lately in Sweden the common feature in the aims for developing the art of the book has been the accentuation of the national character. The difficulties have here been considerable. As yet we do not possess a fount designed by a Swedish artist, but the types we have are founded on an old predilection for the Roman type. Already in 1550 the Roman type had been introduced into Sweden. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries Swedish taste was concentrated upon Dutch and French models. The Roman type which is now used in Sweden, and which is cut in Hamburg, suggests Caslon's somewhat modernized type. It is called “Mediæval-Roman,” and has many advantages, is easy to read, and has an unassuming simplicity. The light tone may perhaps sometimes seem monotonously grey. English readers will certainly find its resemblance to the English type, but will also easily discover the differences.
It is characteristic of Swedish printing that it appears to best advantage and is most personal in publications of an occasional character intended for a select public. The rest of the productions are on a considerably lower level. To English and French tastes our belles lettres show an astonishing lack of typographical unity. There is a great variety in the size and makeup, and also various many-coloured paper covers, both of good and bad style, are used. However, an improvement has occurred in the last few years, a quieter taste has manifested itself. A good step forward is the excellent publication of Swedish classics issued by the “Svenska Vitterhetssamfundet” (the Swedish Literature Society), and printed at Albert Bonnier's works. Here a severe and pure style is combined with exquisite material, and great care is bestowed upon the typography. An undertaking like this would be a credit to any country. In equally good style is the Swedish edition of Olaus Magnus's “Historia de Gentibus Septentrionalibus,” published by another society, the “Michaelisgillet” (the Michael Guild). It was written about 1550 by the last Catholic Archbishop of Sweden, who was one of the greatest travellers and most interesting writers of the Renaissance. The text is illustrated by old woodcuts, which had been carried out according to Olaus Magnus's own designs. Two volumes of this splendid work have been printed by Almqvist and Wiksell, Uppsala.
In a similar manner the great Handicraft Exhibition at Stockholm in 1909 produced four Swedish classics; they were given as prizes in a lottery. These four books were arranged and printed by four different firms, an achievement which could not have been accomplished ten years earlier.
This general survey of the art of the book during the last decades would be incomplete if it did not mention a printing firm which, through its good typography, now occupies a prominent position. The two brothers Hugo and Carl Lagerström have bestowed a great deal of labour on trying to attain a higher level in printing. They learnt their trade in Germany, England, and France, and worked for some years—one in Stockholm, the other in Copenhagen—before they founded the Lagerström Brothers printing firm in 1903. They have also taken a prominent part in the arts and crafts movement generally. They started a paper called the Nordisk Boktryckarkonst (Northern Art of Printing), and founded two societies, one of which is the above-mentioned “Michaelisgillet.” Dr. Isak Collijn, a distinguished librarian, was the third founder.
The first book Lagerström Brothers printed was a kind of typographical prospectus. Among the eight volumes by August Strindberg there is a chemical work called “Antibarbarus.” This book was decorated by a young artist, Artur Sjögren, who is a book-decorator with a profound knowledge of old Swedish typography. The book was printed in a small choice edition on hand-made paper, and four pages are shown here (pp. 249 to 252). Since then Lagerström Brothers have published numerous
