Sweden
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Sweden is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. Sweden borders Norway and Finland, and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel.
Sweden's capital city is Stockholm, which is also the largest city. Since the early 19th century Sweden has generally been at peace and has largely avoided war.
Sweden is one of the Scandinavian countries. The country is known for Absolut vodka, Ikea, Abba and Volvo.
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Culture
The Culture of Sweden is typically perceived as egalitarian, simple, and open to international influences. Sweden never had serfdom and peasant smallholders traditionally had a greater say in the nation's affairs than in virtually any other Western country. Protestant work ethic and trade unionism are other factors often said to have shaped Swedish mentality.
Sweden has many authors of worldwide recognition including August Strindberg and Astrid Lindgren. The nation's most well-known artists are painters such as Carl Larsson and Anders Zorn.
Swedish 20th-century culture is noted by pioneering works in the early days of cinema, with Mauritz Stiller and Victor Sjöström. In the 1920s–1980s, the filmmaker Ingmar Bergman and actors Greta Garbo and Ingrid Bergman became internationally noted people within cinema. More recently, the films of Lukas Moodysson and Lasse Hallström have received international recognition.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s Sweden was seen as an international leader in what is now referred to as the "sexual revolution", with gender equality having particularly been promoted. At the present time, the number of single people is one of the highest in the world. The early Swedish film I Am Curious (Yellow) (1967) reflected a liberal view of sexuality, including scenes of love making that caught international attention, and introduced the concept of the "Swedish sin" that had been introduced earlier in the US with Ingmar Bergman's Summer with Monica.
The image of "hot love and cold people" emerged. Sexual liberalism was seen as part of modernization process that by breaking down traditional borders would lead to the emancipation of natural forces and desires.
Sweden has also become very liberal towards homosexuality, as is reflected in the popular acceptance of films such as Show Me Love, which is about two young lesbians in the small Swedish town of Åmål. Since 1 May 2009, Sweden repealed its "registered partnership" laws and fully replaced them with gender-neutral marriage,
Sweden also offers domestic partnerships for both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. Cohabitation (sammanboende) by couples of all ages, including teenagers as well as elderly couples, is widespread. Recently, Sweden is experiencing a baby boom.
Literature
Swedish authors of worldwide recognition include Carolus Linnaeus, Emanuel Swedenborg, August Strindberg and Astrid Lindgren.
Science
Some well-known inventions and discoveries, historical and modern, were made by Swedes. Some notable figures are Alfred Nobel, Anders Celsius and Lars Magnus Ericsson
Cinema
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"When speaking of Swedish experimental cinema, three filmmakers usually come up: Viking Eggeling (the father of abstract film), Peter Weiss (the world-famous author, also known as a director of political documentaries and surrealist short films) and Gunvor Nelson (one of the best-known female directors of American experimental film). In addition to these three artists, the representatives of contemporary Swedish moving image art are also fairly well known." --John Sundholm Film: Persona (1966) - I Am Curious (Yellow) (1967) - Language of Love (1969) - Fucking Åmål (1998) Actresses: Anita Ekberg - Christina Lindberg - Essy Persson Film directors: Mac Ahlberg - Lukas Moodysson - Ingmar Bergman - Vilgot Sjöman - Bo Arne Vibenius - Ruben Östlund |
Swedish cinema is known for including many acclaimed films; during the 20th century the industry was the most prominent of Scandinavia. This is largely due to the popularity and prominence of directors Victor Sjöström and especially Ingmar Bergman; and more recently Roy Andersson, Lasse Hallström, Lukas Moodysson and Ruben Östlund.
Culture and mass media
Cultural influence from the United Kingdom and the United States has been obvious since the war. Imported and indigenous subcultures rose, with the rockabilly-inspired raggare and anarchist progg cultures as notable examples. (Before the world wars, Swedish culture was more inspired by Germany). Swedish film and music achieved international fame with names like Ingmar Bergman, Sven Nykvist, Lasse Hallström, Birgit Nilsson, ABBA, Entombed, The Cardigans and Roxette. Currently, Sweden is the only non-English-speaking country in the world with a net export of music. Most Swedes are today proficient in English, a great deal of Swedish-produced popular music has originally English lyrics, and English language branding is very common.
See also
See also
- Feminism in Sweden
- List of museums in Sweden
- Art of Sweden
- Cinema of Sweden
- Swedish counterculture
- They Call Us Misfits (1968) - Stefan Jarl
- Immigration to Sweden
- Göran Adamson
