Gunnar Mauritz Widforss (1879-1934) Biography

View available paintings by Gunnar Mauritz Widforss (1879-1934)

Gunnar Widforss, Grand Canyon, Watercolor on Paper, 1925, 17" x 13"

Gunnar was born in Stockholm, Sweden in 1879. He studied to be a muralist in Stockholm from 1896-1900. Gunnar traveled and painted landscapes extensively in Europe and Africa gaining acclaim among European royalty.

Gunnar Widforss, Grand Canyon Landscape, Watercolor, 24" x 19"

In 1921, he arrived in San Francisco and began to paint the National Parks of the American West. Gunnar's watercolors are renowned throughout the world, particularly his adopted home at the Grand Canyon of Arizona. He established a studio on the rim of the Grand Canyon where his paintings were sold by the Fred Harvey Company at El Tovar.  He died in 1934, while standing on the rim of the canyon and is buried nearby.

Gunnar M. Widforss, Aspens, Watercolor, c. 1924, 24.5" x 19.5"

Gunnar was a member of the California Watercolor Society and Scandinavian American Artists. Today, his paintings are in many private collections and can be viewed at many of the National Parks. He is considered to be one of America's greatest landscape painters.