The writer Karl August Nicander travelled south towards Italy, to experience Europe through the eyes of his times. His accounts of his travels, at once poetic and down to earth, served as a guide to many Swedish travellers after him. Södermark painted this portrait in 1827, soon after Nicander had arrived in Rome. The artist has chosen to depict him seized with emotion, with an introverted gaze, as if to underline his sensitivity to the deep impressions gathered on his journey.