The time of Axel

Lars Lerin grew up in the working town of Munkfors in Värmland county, and already dreamed of becoming an artist as a young boy. He found a role model and a mentor in his vicinity early on. Axel Florin was born in Munkfors in 1907 and earned his living as a factory worker. Florin managed to get accepted to the handicraft school in Gothenburg and studied there for a short period – he simply could not afford to stay very long. Throughout his life, however, he continued to create in his spare time, winning some recognition as a sculptor. He had his studio in an outbuilding, where the teenager Lars was also allowed to spend time and paint.
In The time of Axel, Lars Lerin tells his story straight and unsentimental, about a fate that is so close to us and yet feels so distant. The book is well illustrated with water color paintings of houses, environments and the people who are now gone. As in Naturlära, Lars Lerin shows that he is not only an outstanding watercolor painter but also a sensitive writer, who can create moods and presence in both words and images. The time of Axel is a document of a vanished world, but also an artist’s tribute to a colleague – a depiction of the conditions of creation and the irresistible need to express oneself through art.