Åtta by Jim Klein
“En arbetsam människa är bättre än en hop dagdrivare.”
(A hard-working man is better than a crowd of loafers.)
– Classic Swedish saying, author unknown
In the summer of 1971 the Apollo 15 was launched, the 26th Amendment lowered the voting age to 18, and Jim was working on an idyllic farm in Sweden.
Abstract contemporary fine artist Jim Klein spent a blissful summer living and working on a rural farm in Tjärby, Sweden. He spent time reflecting on his memories of Sweden and shared his thoughts on how our life experiences make their way to the surface in unexpected ways.
How did you find yourself in Sweden?
Jim: A few summers before I was in Sweden, we hosted an exchange student on our family farm in Colorado to work. It was a great experience and we stayed in touch, so when I graduated college I reached out to him and his family. They were wonderful enough to host me as an extra hand on their farm for the summer.
The mother was from a lumber baron-type family from northern Sweden. We visited another farm at one point during the summer farther north, near the arctic circle. A farmer there was still using traditional equipment like horse-power to till his fields, no mechanical tools, that kind of thing. It was a very interesting experience to see!
What was it like living in Sweden?
Jim: While living there I was fortunate enough to experience quite a bit of Sweden. The farm was located only two miles (around 3 km) from the Baltic Sea, so when I wasn’t working I would hop on a bike and wander up and down the shoreline.
I was able to celebrate Midsummer during my time there as well. It’s a huge event, a celebration around the summer solstice. At midnight on Midsummer eve we joined this huge crowd and celebrated.
What did you do on the farm?
Jim: Growing up on our own family farm, I was experienced in the lifestyle and the work; it felt like a fairly typical farming experience for me but just in another country. The Swedish farm raised cereal grains and mid-calves (young bulls), so that was interesting to learn but aside from the usual farm chores, driving the tractor, etc, I gave all the barns on property a fresh coat of bright red paint. That really stuck with me. Also, I split the winter’s supply of firewood.
The family and I still stay in contact. l even took a trip to Sweden with our teenagers to visit the farm.
How did Åtta emerge from those memories of Sweden?
Jim: Åtta essentially burst through the brush and paints onto the canvas not too long ago. It was a very spontaneous painting.
As is often the case, I struggled when thinking of a title for the work. The name didn’t occur to me until I was looking at the colors and brush strokes while contemplating a title. With Åtta, something notable jumped out at me: it felt significant that all the colors are interrelated, tied together, and no part of the painting is left alone or isolated.
I saw the yellow gold nestled within the swirls of color; there were eight. The dark patches of browns and blacks pulled the bright red to the forefront and I was very suddenly thrown back to the farm in Tjärby, painting the barns that summer long ago.
In Swedish, åtta is the number 8. As soon as I decided on Åtta, I knew it was right.
Seeing these life experiences coming out in my paintings, it continuously fascinates me how the art brings out these memories.
Åtta and Tjärby are for sale! Discover more abstract art inspired by Jim’s travels here.