Inspiration from Rome

Inspirasjon fra Roma (ca. 1970s)

Ink marker and watercolor on paper
Sigurd Bergmann

In Inspirasjon fra Roma — Inspiration from Rome — Sigurd Bergmann brings classical themes into a vibrant, sketch-like dream. Painted in the 1970s, this piece is full of movement and improvisation: a courtyard framed by Roman arches, a playful fountain at its center, and figures drifting through the space like actors on a sunlit stage.

Executed in fluid marker lines over lush washes of watercolor, the piece feels spontaneous and alive. One figure offers a bowl, another gestures toward the pool, where a bird bathes in a red-rimmed basin — perhaps symbolic of purity, or simply a nod to life’s small wonders. Swirling foliage encircles the scene, hinting at the wildness that always borders civilization.

This is Sigurd at his most playful and experimental — not copying Rome, but responding to it. Letting memory and imagination take the lead.