Installation view over white walls with the two artworks Jean Börlin i Siamesisk Dans (1919) and Den döende dandyn (1918) in wooden frames

Nils Dardel, Jean Börlin in Siamese Dance (1919) and The Dying Dandy (1918) Photo: Mattias Lindbäck/Moderna Museet

Conversation in the Collection: Pink Sails

Conversation

15.2 2025

Stockholm

In the second part of “Conversation in the Collection”, Erik Mattsson, deputy museum director and curator at Dansmuseet, and Matilda Olof-Ors, curator at Moderna Museet, meet in a conversation about the visionary and art collector Rolf de Maré. The conversation takes place in the exhibition “Pink Sails – Swedish Modernism in the Moderna Museet Collection”.

Rolf de Maré (1888–1964) began collecting art in 1914 and built up an impressive collection of works by the innovative artists of the time. With the help of his friend Nils Dardel and his contacts in 1910s Paris, including the art dealers Wilhelm Uhde and Alfred Flechtheim, de Maré acquired art of the international avant-garde.

He also created the Swedish Ballet – Les Ballets Suédois – in Paris together with his partner Jean Börlin. The company presented ground-breaking stage art in collaboration with artists such as Fernand Léger and Erik Satie. In 1933, de Maré opened the world’s first dance museum in Paris, and later Dansmuseet in Stockholm.

Rolf de Maré was heavily criticised by the Swedish gutter press because of his unconventional lifestyle, and his art collection was ridiculed. Much later, he donated large parts of his collection to Moderna Museet. Through the donation, several important works by the international avant-garde were added to the museum’s collection, including Pablo Picasso’s “Guitar Player”. This and several other works are now exhibited in the exhibition “Pink Sails – Swedish Modernism in the Moderna Museet Collection”.

Installation of view Pink Sails. Photo of a white hall with wooden floors, on the walls hangs artworks and two sculptures are placed to the left in the image.
Installation view Pink Sails, 2023 Photo: Mattias Lindbäck/Moderna Museet

Calendar events

Installation view over white walls with the two artworks Jean Börlin i Siamesisk Dans (1919) and Den döende dandyn (1918) in wooden frames
  • Conversation
  • In Swedish

Conversation in the Collection: Pink Sails

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