C O (Carl Otto) Hultén

Born 1916 in Malmö. Died on Feb. 8th, 2015 in Lomma, Sweden.

Also previous exhibitions at Galerie Bel'Art: 1987 and 1989.

BIOGRAPHY - CV

C O (Carl Otto) Hultén is born in 1916 in Malmö, and starts painting in 1935, starts the group Minotaur in 1942, which later becomes the fundament for Imaginisterna around 1945. This group later becomes part of Cobra.
CO Hultén's art do not only reflect The North, it is in it's deepest substance one with the North. By this i have said almost everything about him. 
He travels from time to time outside Scandinavia, to seek the postman Chevals castle in France, to meet an African fetish or an Serbian peasant. But he mostly travels from the North to the North. He participated in the Nordic group Cobra, which instead of collecting vegetables, united roots. 
Cobra was a promise, and Hultén meets this promise.
Under the Cobra period 1948-1951 our friend C O played with the technique, most of all he invented 'imprimaget' , he limited and dug out his domain before he absorbed in it. Other painters in Cobra went through a similar development for instance the Dutchman Appel and the Belgian Alechinsky. 
He discovered that The North is not just a fable and neither just reality, but both fable and reality, and that the artistic way of expression is not just a mean but also a universe. Is cloth and paper allready the sky? Is the colour not allready a soil? Is ink a river - or a night? The trouble was in this way to get substance of the universal art to coincide with the Nordic reality-fable. How did Hultén succeed with this. Through a rare spontaneity, a seeking sponatneity that moves with thousands of various speeds, and looks like the Nordic way of thinking towards the language, while people from the south thinks from the language.
The spontaneity that interests us is not the dashing elegance, but the strength that first swallows the technique and then bites. The fundamental reality-fable at Hultén appear to be the night, the night that despite the furniture factories is the most important speciality in Scandinavia, the night from where the light has to be pulled out in an endless love dispute.
The North itself is a boundless drawing or rather a boundless engraving, which portray the birth of the night, life and death, from the icy beach to the spring forrest, from a village of small flakes, to a city of great lines, from a river full of stars to a sky full of lakes, from the dimness of midday, to the midnight sun. In the south the darkness and light changes with harmonious equality. In the North they fight, love each other and parts just to be mixed together again, from here to eternity.
Hulténs works shows this story and this geography, these meetings, and these mixtures, and I most of all think of a new litograph, where you see the light explode the night without supressing it. Without supressing the night, without covering the changing excited, violent and vivid travel from night against light and without supressing the jump of spontanity, scratches and cracks towards the work. 

Hulténs art is cosmic that is why it is sincere.
Christian Dotremont, 1962

1936     Employed at Åkerlund & Rausing in Lund.
1938     Exhibition in his own studio.
1940     Exhibition in his own studio.
1943     Minotaur in the month of March, at the Town Hall in Malmö,
              together with Max Walter Svanberg, Endre Nemes,
              Adja Yunkers and Carl O Svensson.
1944     The conception of imaginism – imaginist, was coined
              by Stig Lindqvist.
1945     The Imaginist group, together with Max Walter Svanberg
              and Anders Österlin was formed.
1945     Marries Marianne Nilsson.
1947     Drömmar ur bladens händer, and Image publishing
              was founded.
1947     Travels to Paris, together with Anders Österlin, visit
              Palais Idéal.
1947     Gösta Kriland and Gudrun Åhlberg joins the Imaginist group.
1948     Exhibition at Skånes Art Association and Malmö Museum.
1948     One-man exhibition “Aura”, at Krognoshuset, Lund.
1948 -51 Joins the COBRA group.
1949     Motorbike journey to Andorra revisits Palais Idéal.
1949     COBRA – conference in Bregnerd north of Copenhagen.
              Collaboration with fellow COBRA painters. Loft paintings.
1949     Expo Aleby in Stockholm, arranged by Gösta Kriland
              and Wilhelm Freddie.
1949     Skånsk avantgardekonst in Malmö museum, with
              Bertil Gadö , Lars Engström, Bengt Orup, Anders Österlin
              and Max Walter Svanberg.
1949     God konst in Gothenburg, with Max Walter Svanberg.
1949     Participates in the exhibition Spiralen at
              Charlottenborg, Copenhagen.
1949     All världens konst, group exhibition, at
              Åkerlund & Rausing, Lund.
1950     Together with the COBRA-group at Le Louvier, Belgium.
1950     Stops working at Åkerlund & Rausing.
1951     Travels with Marianne to Spain.
1951     The Imaginist’s exhibits at Modern konst i hemmiljö,
              Stockholm.
1951     Exhibition at Skåne Art Society, Malmö.
1951     Executes together with Svanberg and Österlin mural
              paintings at Radiotjänst, Malmö.
1951     Nutida svensk grafik, at the National museum, Stockholm.
1952     Det unga måleriet, Galerie Blanche, Stockholm.
1952     Travels to Yugoslavia.
1952     The Imaginist’s exhibits at Malmö museum and
              Gothenburg Art Hall, with Victor Brauner, Wilfredo Lam,
              Carl Henning Pedersen and Zao Wu Ki.
1953     Ib Hultén is born.
1953     Participates in an exhibition with Skånsk grafik in
              Branner’s Bibliophile bookstore, Copehnhegen.
1953     The Imaginist’s exhibits at Galerie de Babylon in Paris,
              the exhibition continues to Il Nunero, Florence.
1954    Travel to Yugoslavia and Turkey with Stig Andersson.
1954    The Imaginist’s exhibits at Skånska Art Museum, Malmö.
1954    Bertil Lundberg joins the Imaginist Group.
1956    Galerie Colibri and the periodical Salamander.
1955    Participates in March, with Ung grafik, at Kulturen, Lund.
1955    Participates in Première confrontation d’art experimental, Paris.
1955    Participates in Paroles Visibles at Galerie La Roue, Paris.
1955    Participates in Phases at Galerie Proteo, Mexico City.
1955    Paintings in the doorways of the neighborhood
             Godheten, Malmö.
1955    Mural mosaic on the façade of the Institute for
             Color Prints, Lund.
1956    Divorce from Marianne.
1956    Proposals for the stairwell in Malmö’s town library,
             Dikten formar verkligheten, and proposals for a gable painting
             in Lund, Konst vid källan.
1956    Awarded the Trotzig – scholarship.
1956    Proposals for the adornment of the subway station
             Centralen, Stockholm.
1956    The Imaginist Group is dissolved.
1956-57    Teaches at the Essem School in Malmö.
1957     Participates in an International traveling exhibition in
              Bukunin, Tokyo and Osaka.
1957     Participates in Svensk Nutidskonst, in the newly
              opened Lunds Konsthall..
1957     Proposal for mobile-light-sculpture for the
              Domus department store, Malmö.
1958     Nordisk abstract kunst, Kunstnerernes Hus, Oslo.
1958     One-man show, Gummesons, Stockholm.
1958     One-man show, Malmö Museum.
1958     Winkel & Magnusen, Gammel Strand, Copenhagen.
1958     Mural painting, Malmö stadium.
1958     Is being awarded the Emil Breg scholarship.
1959     One-man show, Norrköping Konstmuseum and the
              Konsthallen in Gothenburg.
1959     Mural Samlade grupper, for the new County building, in Lund.
1959     Participates in Återblick, at Moderna Museet, Stockholm.
1959     Borås Art Association’s 25th- anniversary, Borås Museum.
1959     Nordisk kunst, arranged by Nordiska Art Association,
              Odense, Denmark.
1959     Participates in the exhibition of Skandinavisk konst,
              Lima, Peru.
1960     Enamel made for Lund municipality.
1960     Kunstnerernes Kunsthandel in Copenhagen.
1960     Participates in Eurokonst, at the Art Academy in Copenhagen.
1960     Moderna Museet, visits Louisiana, Denmark.
1961     Marries Birgitta Stenberg.
1961    The Pittsburgh International, USA.
1961    Le Ranelagh, in Paris together with amongst others,
             Fahlström, Reuterswärd and Österlin.
1961    Participates in Internationale Malerei, Wolframs
             Eschenbach, Germany.
1961    L’Art Suédois Actuel, Paris. Together with, among others
             Reuterswärd, Fahlström and Österlin.
1961    8 emaljemålare, a traveling exhibition.
1961    Together with Jørgen Haugen Sørensen, in the
             SDS-Hall, Malmö.
1961    Participates in Aspect 61, at Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm.
1961    Makes a movie about Palais Idéal.
1962    Galerie Leger, Malmö.
1962    COBRA et après, Galerie d’Aujourd’hui, Brussels.
1962-63 Traveling exhibition, USA, 12 Swedish Painters.
1962    Aktiv färg, Konsthallen, Lund..
1963    Galerie Pierre, Stockholm.
1963    Nordisk konst 1953-63, arranged by the Nordic Art
             Association, Helsinki.
1963    Participates in an exhibition at Den Frie, Copenhagen.
1963    African sculptures on show, among others from CO Hultén’s
             collection, at Lunds konsthall.
1963    Graphica, at Kulturen in Lund – CO Hultén is awarded
             the first prize.
1964    Gummesons, Stockholm.
1964    Svenskt 60-tal, Norrköping Konstmuseum.
1966    With Birgitta Stenberg Hultén, adornment of Rosengård.
1965    Le merveilleux moderne/Det underbara moderna,
             Lunds konsthall.
1965    Participates in Images Suédoises, Images of Sweden,
             Schwedische Bilder
, Gröningen, Helsingborg.
1965    Authors choose art, Stockholm (Lars Forssell chose,
             Jorden är ett rum, by Hultén).   
1965    Ung mästarkonst, Skånska Konstmuseet, Lund.
1965    Enamel painting for the Pilevall School, Trelleborg.
1965    Proposal for gable painting in enamel, Mersch, Luxemburg.
1965    Galleri Leger’s summer exhibition, Malmö.
1966    Tre linjer i svenskt måleri, 1916-1966, Sveagalleriet,
             Stockholm, curator Rolf Söderberg.
1966    COBRA-exhibition, Louisiana.
1966    Participates in Tekst og tegn, Copenhagen.
1967    Imaginisterna, Skånska Konstmuseum.
1967    Människa nu, organized by Samfundet konstnärer i Skåne,
             Lunds Konsthall.
1968    Concrete element for the façade of Staffanstorp’s
             Municipal Hall.
1968    Participates in Erotic Art, at Lunds konsthall.
1968    Retrospective exhibition at Lunds konsthall, The Art Hall of
             Gothenburg and in 1969 at The Art Academy in Stockholm.
1969    Enamel painting, for TCO, Sturegatan, Stockholm.
1969    Söderslätt’s Art Association, in Trelleborg.
1971    Adornment of the housing area, Lindängen, together with
             Barbro Bäckström and Lennart Aschenbrenner, under
             the name of COLABB.
1971    Is being awarded the Large Working Scholarship by
             the Government.
1972    Travel to West Africa together with Birgitta Stenberg.
1973    Suggestion for adornment of the main office of
             Sparbanken, in Malmö.
1973-74 Travel in West Africa together with LG Lundberg.
1974    Exhibits together with the COBRA-group in Brussels.
1974    Participates in Svensk nutidskonst, Mannheim, Germany.
1974    Svensk samtidsgrafik, Havanna, Cuba.
1975    Svensk samtidsgrafik, Mexico City.
1976    Grafik från Skåne, Stockholm.
1976    Dikt och bild, arranged by Art Promotion, Malmö.
1976    Galleri Glemminge.
1976    Osby Art Association.
1976    Art Forum, Norrköping.
1977    Svensk konst under 50 år, the County Museum
             of Jönköping.
1977    Grafiktriennalen, Gothenburg Art Museum.
1977-78 Fantasins frigörelse, Surrealismen I Svensk konst,
               traveling exhibition.
1978    Group show Akvarell och gouache 1978, Galleri
             Engström, Stockholm.
1978    Allendemuseet, Moderna Museet, Stockholm and in
             1979 to Helsinki.
1979    Vandra och förvandla, Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm.
1979    Galleri Mellbystrand.
1979    Svensk Grafik Då och Nu, Galleri Mellbystrand.
1980    Östersunds konsthall.
1980    Ur dagens läge, Galleri Händer, Stockholm.
1980    Skånskt 80-tal, Södertälje konsthall.
1980    Sydsvenska Dagbladet. Art Prize.
1980    Group exhibition Ur dagens läge, Galleri Händer, Stockholm.
1980    Adornment at the County Administrative Board in Halmstad,
             Fantasiens minnesbank.
1980    Member of the Art Academy.
1981    The Museum in Varberg, Sweden.
1981    Dansk-svensk grafik, Jönköping County Museum.
1981    Graphic Art Exhibition, Kristianstad Museum and again
             at Grafiska Sällskapet, Stockholm.
1981    Monumental painting, Fantasins minnesbank, for the
             entrance hall in the County administration’s new
             building, Halmstad.
1981    Vikingsberg’s Art Museum, Helsingborg.
1981    Grafiska Sällskapet, Stockholm.
1981    Sparbanken in Göinge.
1982    Sweden’s Allmänna Konstförening’s Jubilee exhibition.
1982    COBRA 1948-1951, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.
1982    Arbeten 1937-1982, Malmö konsthall.
1982    Galerie Leger, Malmö.
1982    Grafik 1937-1982, Galleri Wallner, Malmö.
1982    Gouacher 1956-1964, Galleri Händer, Malmö.
1983    Galleri F-15, Moss, Norway.
1983    Sölvesborg’s konsthall.
1985    Ystad’s konstmuseum.
1986    Art Centrum, Gävle.
1986    Galleri Astley, Uttersberg.
1986    Blekinge County Museum.
1986    Group exhibition with the COBRA-group in Sala Mendoza,
             Caracas, in Malmö konsthall, and in the Haru Museum,
             Tokyo, Liljevalchs konsthall, Stockholm. In 1988 it went to
             Odense, Denmark and Amsterdam, Holland.
1987    Målningar från imaginisttiden, Galerie Bel’Art, Stockholm.
             New paintings, Falsterbo konsthall.
1988    COBRA 40 years after, Amsterdam.
1989    Måleri 1956-1965, Galerie Bel’Art. Stockholm.
1989    New paintings, Galerie Boibrino, Stockholm.
1989    Fantasins minnesbank, Konstmuseet, Lund..
1989    Annualen, Stockholm.
1989    Imaginister då och nu, Kalmar County Museum.
1989    Group exhibition Animalen, Stockholm.
1990    Genesis, one-man show, Galerie Boibrino, Stockholm Art Fair.
1990    Centro Cultural, Malaga Spain.
1990    Guest exhibition (Mar.17th-Apr.1st.) at
             Decembristerna, Copenhagen.
1990    Group exhibition at Galleri GKM, at Fiac, Paris.
1991    Hommage à Matta, Grand Palais, Paris.
1991    Galleri GKM, Malmö.
1992    Jubilee exhibition, Galleri GKM, Malmö.
1992    Kristianstad County, Art Association, Kristianstad
             County Museum.
1993    Birgitta Stenberg-Hultén dies.
1994    Besvärjelser, upptäckter, aningar, Ronneby Art Hall.
1995    Participates in the inauguration of a new museum for
             Contemporary Art, in Amatelveen, Amsterdam.
1995    Afrikansk stamkonst, paintings by CO Hultén,
             Galleri Bass, Kristianstad.
1997    Besvärjelser, upptäckter, aningar, Gothenburg Art Museum
             and Bildmuseet, Umeå.
1997    Magins hjärta, CO Hultén’s collection of African Tribal Art,
             Galleri Astley, Uttersberg.
1998    Sedda former – Drömda rum, Mjellby konstmuseum, Halmstad.
2000    Gallery in C, Cologne.
2002    Ystad Art Museum.
2003    Galerie Bel’Art, Stockholm.
2003    CO Hultén – abstrakta verk från 40-talet, Galerie Bel’Art,
             Stockholm.
2003    Galleri Palm, Falsterbo.
2003    Galleri Astley, Uttersberg.
2003    Awarded the City of Malmö’s Cultural Prize.
2004    Oron och Begäret – Surrealismen i Skandinavien 1930-1950,
             Gothenburg Art Museum, collaboration with the Art
             Museum in Bergen and Stenersenmuseet, Oslo.
2004    Växjö Art Hall.
2004    Det imaginära och det konkreta, Norrköping Art Museum
             and Malmö konstmuseum.
2005    CO Hultén nya målningar, Galerie Bel’Art, Stockholm.
2005    June 11th, inauguration of a new work of art that originated
             from part of the adornment in the earlier Municipal
             Building in Staffanstorp.
2005    Hässleholm konsthall.
2006    Art Forum, Norrköping.
2006    Borstahusen konsthall, Landskrona.
2006    Participates in “De olydigas konstsalong”, Christinehof Castle.
2006    Ystad konstmuseum.
2006    A tribute to CO Hultén, Works from nine decades,
             Galerie Bel’Art, Stockholm.
2006    Staffanstorp konsthall.
2008    Works 1944-1955, Galerie Bel'Art, Stockholm.
2012    Retrospective Moderna Museet, Malmö.
2016    ¨CO Hultén - The Swedish Cobra Painter¨,
             Skovhuset, Verløse, Denmark
2016    ¨CO Hultén - The Swedish Cobra Painter¨, Museum Jorn,
             Silkeborg, Denmark
2016    Krognoshuset, Lund, ¨Late works - 1990 - 2005¨
2017    Galerie Leger, Malmö