iMillesgården · Lidingö
Life in Color & Form: Robert and Barbro Nilsson
Retrospective of sculptor Robert Nilsson, a Milles pupil, and textile pioneer Barbro Nilsson of Märta Måås-Fjetterström: sketches, weaving samples, models and letters.
A loom seven metres long stands in the art gallery, built specially for the show. The museum calls it perhaps the largest in Sweden, and the weavings hang around it from floor to ceiling.
The couple are Barbro Nilsson, who ran the Märta Måås-Fjetterström weaving studio in Båstad, and her husband Robert, a sculptor who studied under Carl Milles, the man whose garden you are standing in. Textiles, sculpture and painting share the room with sketches, templates, weaving samples, models and archive material. It began as a 2024 show at Blå Hallen in Höganäs, and the curators set the work in the Nilssons' home studio, treating the house as part of the practice.
The Swedish review site Kulturista found it less about technique than about two people who seem to have been very fond of each other. It is included in admission (170 SEK), and English introductions run on weekend afternoons at 2pm. Seven metres of loom makes your Kallax assembly look like a modest ambition.
Editor's pick
A joint retrospective of sculptor Robert Nilsson, a pupil of Carl Milles, and textile designer Barbro Nilsson of Märta Måås-Fjetterström: sketches, weaving samples, models and letters.
Look for
The seven-metre loom
A purpose-built weaving loom, described by the museum as perhaps the largest in Sweden, stands in the art gallery.
Monumental textiles
Large weavings hang from floor to ceiling, shown with the sketches, templates and weaving samples they were made from.
Letters, diaries and watercolours
Personal material from the couple's life sits beside photographs, models and watercolours, tying the work to their home studio.
Good for
- Going Solo
- Nerding Out
- Out-Of-Town Guests
With kids
Under-18s are free. The museum lists a children's programme on its site; check it for current activities.
Also at Millesgården
On now nearby
Image credits
5
- Life in Color & Form: Robert and Barbro NilssonCourtesy of Millesgården
- MUCHA – Beyond Art NouveauCourtesy of Artipelag
- Reflections through timePhoto: Karin Björkquist
- Medieval FashionPhoto: Ola Myrin, The Swedish History Museum/SHM
- MillesgårdenHolger Ellgaard / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0