Hugo Simberg
On the River of Life

On the River of Life (1896) by Hugo Simberg (1873–1917) was originally created as an ex libris for the artist’s friend, bookseller Viktor Hoving. It depicts a white-clad figure steering a boat along a winding river. Similarities may be found between this work and the painting Isle of the Dead (1883) by the Swiss artist Arnold Böcklin, where an oarsman can be seen transporting a coffin to the afterlife. In Simberg’s picture, the boat carries books instead of a corpse, making it apt for Hoving’s bookplate.