Finnish artist Albert Gustaf Aristides Edelfelt  was born on 21 July 1854 in Porvoo, Finland. He began his formal studies of art in 1869 at the Drawing School of the Finnish Art Society; and continued as a student of Adolf von Becker (Antwerp Academy of Art), and later with Jean-Leon Gerome (École Nationale des Beaux Arts, Paris).

• In Paris he shared a studio with the American, Julian Alden Weir who introduced him to John Singer Sargent. After Paris, Edelfelt studied at St. Petersburg, Russia.

Edelfelt was one of the first Finnish artists to achieve international fame. He enjoyed considerable success in Paris and was one of the founders of the Realist art movement in Finland.  Among his students was Léon Bakst. Sadly, Edelfelt died on 18 August, 1905 at the age of 51 years.

• A Finnish commemorative coin celebrating the 150th anniversary of his Edelfelt’s birth was minted in 2004.  The reverse face of the coin shows an embossed image of his face.

Is it a great painting? – A penny for your thoughts.

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