Ernst Josephson’s oeuvre embraces developments in the late 19th century from suffocating romantic history to freer depictions of reality. Josephson was good at adopting trends. After he had been painting in his early style, he encountered modern painting in Paris. Now he used everyday events as his point of departure instead of the works of the old masters. His images are immediate and convey a strong feeling of presence, as in this portrait of his close friend Allan Österlind.