Johan Tirén
Johan Tirén (12 October 1853, Själevad - 24 August 1911, Länna Parish, Uppland) was a Swedish painter who specialized in scenes of the rural life in Northern Sweden. Biography He was the older brother of the artist, . At the age of seven, his family moved to Oviken in Jämtland, where his father served as the Vicar. He originally attended the Tekniska skolan in Stockholm then spent the years 1877 to 1880 at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts, where he won a Royal Medal in 1880 for his painting of Loki imprisoned by Æsir. He first came to public attention when his painting, "A Jämtland Legend" was displayed at the Academy. His fellow student, Anders Zorn, sat as the model for the näck (water spirit). After studying in Norrland in 1881, he was able to obtain a scholarship and used it to make a study trip; visiting the Netherlands, Belgium, Paris and Upper Bavaria. While in Rome, he received orders from the Academy Director to begin studies in Munich. Instead, after spending the summer in Denmark, he returned to Paris and studied with Jean-Léon Gérôme, but found himself uninspired to paint by what he saw there. When his