Portrait of Fru Lisen Samson, nee Hirsch, Arranging Flowers at a Window

Anders Zorn completed this intimate domestic scene showing Fru Lisen Samson arranging flowers at a window. Zorn became one of Sweden's most celebrated artists, gaining international fame as a portraitist whose subjects included three American presidents. His ability to capture the individual character of his models made him the equal of John Singer Sargent in depicting high society.

The play of natural light through the window is characteristic of Zorn's work. He mastered the depiction of light early in his career, first with watercolors and later translating those techniques to oil painting. His famous restricted palette of white, yellow ochre, vermilion, and black allowed for notable tonal range despite its limited colors.

This work resides in a private collection. Major collections of Zorn's paintings can be found at the National Museum in Stockholm, the Zorn Museum in Mora (his hometown), and the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. At just 29, Zorn received the Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur at the 1889 Paris World Fair.