Emil Janel
Encyclopedia
Emil Janel was an Swedish-born, American artist. Although he was a respected still life painter, he is mainly known for his caricature
s in the Scandinavian flat-plane style of woodcarving
, and is considered by many to be one of the best of this genre.
Municipality in Dalarna
County, Sweden
. In 1923, Janel moved to Canada
, then to Seattle, United States
. After some encouragement by a local store keeper, he eventually settled in San Francisco with his wife and began study at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute
. During the 1930s, he spent considerable time at Russian River
, where he produced carvings of a local species of Alder
Wood. It is said that he preferred that particular medium because of the similarity to flesh tones, and that he kept his carvings in a bucket of water to keep them wet while working on them. He used very thin aniline dyes on the non-flesh portions of his carvings. Emil is said to have referred to his style as "exaggerated realism".
In 1965 he was awarded The Royal Order of Vasa
(Kungliga Vasaorden) by the King of Sweden for his artistic contributions. In 1981, Emil Janel died in San Francisco. Over 35 Janel carvings are part of the permanent collection of the American Swedish Institute
, donated by collector, artist and author Ira Weissman.
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
s in the Scandinavian flat-plane style of woodcarving
Scandinavian flat-plane style of woodcarving
The Scandinavian flat-plane style of woodcarving is a style of figure carving. The figures are carved in large flat planes, created primarily using a carving knife. Tool marks are left in the carving and very little rounding or sanding is done...
, and is considered by many to be one of the best of this genre.
Biography
Emil Gottfred Janel was born in the village Hansjö near OrsaOrsa
Orsa is a locality and the seat of Orsa Municipality, Dalarna County, Sweden, with 5,278 inhabitants in 2005. It is located in the northern part of lake Siljan, about 15 kilometers north of the town Mora...
Municipality in Dalarna
Dalarna
', English exonym: Dalecarlia, is a historical province or landskap in central Sweden. Another English language form established in literature is the Dales. Places involving the element Dalecarlia exist in the United States....
County, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. In 1923, Janel moved to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, then to Seattle, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. After some encouragement by a local store keeper, he eventually settled in San Francisco with his wife and began study at what is now the San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute is a school of higher education in contemporary art with the main campus in the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, California. Its graduate center is in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The private, non-profit institution is accredited by WASC and is a member of the...
. During the 1930s, he spent considerable time at Russian River
Russian River (California)
The Russian River, a southward-flowing river, drains of Sonoma and Mendocino counties in Northern California. With an annual average discharge of approximately , it is the second largest river flowing through the nine county Greater San Francisco Bay Area with a mainstem 110 miles ...
, where he produced carvings of a local species of Alder
Alder
Alder is the common name of a genus of flowering plants belonging to the birch family . The genus comprises about 30 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, few reaching large size, distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and in the Americas along the Andes southwards to...
Wood. It is said that he preferred that particular medium because of the similarity to flesh tones, and that he kept his carvings in a bucket of water to keep them wet while working on them. He used very thin aniline dyes on the non-flesh portions of his carvings. Emil is said to have referred to his style as "exaggerated realism".
In 1965 he was awarded The Royal Order of Vasa
Order of Vasa
The Royal Order of Vasa was a Swedish Royal order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III of Sweden...
(Kungliga Vasaorden) by the King of Sweden for his artistic contributions. In 1981, Emil Janel died in San Francisco. Over 35 Janel carvings are part of the permanent collection of the American Swedish Institute
American Swedish Institute
The American Swedish Institute is a non-profit educational and research organization and museum in the Phillips West neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The organization is dedicated to the preservation and study of the historic role Sweden and Americans of Swedish heritage have...
, donated by collector, artist and author Ira Weissman.