Jacob Heinrich Elbfas

Jacob Heinrich Elbfas was a Baltic German portrait painter, active in Sweden.

Life Elbfas was born in Livonia and educated in Strasbourg, in a tradition dating back to Renaissance portraits. He established himself in Sweden from 1622 and from 1628 in Stockholm where he became a guild master. From 1634 to 1640, he worked as a court painter for Queen Maria Eleonora, and was frequently employed by the Swedish nobility. His influence on Swedish art was considerable until a new generation of artists were invited by Queen Christina during the 1640s. He died in Stockholm in 1664.