Fairytales from Sweden: John Bauer

Article by Flora

John Bauer is a Swedish illustrator and painter primarily known for his works published in a literary magazine named Bland Tomtar och Troll (translated as “Among Elves and Trolls”) at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Bauer was born in southern Sweden, yet he moved to Stockholm to study art when he was only sixteen years old. Upon completing his studies, he traveled to Lapland, the northern part of Sweden, where he encountered the daily life and culture of the Sami people, which would greatly influence his art. His use of reindeer, wolfskins, and knife belts later in his work had its beginnings during his Lapland visit. He also visited Germany and Italy.

Bauer used watercolor and oil paints as mediums in his art. The subjects of his wonderful paintings were Swedish mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. Being a long-time admirer of Bauer’s work, I cannot imagine him without the folk tales, fairies, and trolls. This is how it looks like a hundred years later; those paintings were made: they were made to bring life to the fairy tales and tell tales on a single page.


The Horse Led Him by the Bridle


John Bauer – Hästen Ledde Han Vid Betslet

This illustration is my favorite among Bauer’s works. Maybe it looks a bit incomplete, yet the story is still there. Upon observing this image, we can understand that the seven sisters were rescued by the bard and taken to safer places or to a certain place where only the horse knows their whereabouts.


The Princess and Trolls

John Bauer -The Princess and the Trolls

Perhaps the most famous fairy tale Bauer illustrates is the Princess and the Trolls. John Bauer made this set of illustrations for the tale Bortbytingarna (The Changelings) by Helena Nyblom. This is a changeling story where the trolls steal a human child, Princess Bianca Maria, and replace her with their own. The troll parents love and cherish the little princess who happens to have long, golden glittering hair. Her hair grows long as she grows up. Even though the parents love and accept their strange children, the children struggle to fit in and occasionally run away from their families.


John Bauer – Princess Tuvstarr Gazing Down Into The Dark Waters Of The Forest Tarn

One day, Princess Bianca Maria looks into a lake and sees her own reflection on the surface. Awakening to her difference starts her individuation journey, and she finally reaches herself.


Bauer’s paintings are atmospheric, creating impressive scenes with the use of opposites such as light and dark, small and large, rough and fair, day and night. This also pertains to the transformative element in fairy tales. The fairy tales were told to children to prepare them for the transformative inner growth they would experience in their lives. Therefore fairy tales and fairy tale illustrations have always been and will always be of great interest to all of us of all ages and walks of life.

John Bauer – Princess and the Troll Sons 1915

To learn professional drawing techniques,