"Elias Erdtman always liked to spend the summer by the sea and the skerries, at the transition between land and water. The gray rocks, the evening-red outcrops, the windswept pines and the wide sea view reappear in many of his motifs. It is a naturalistic painting, which consistently follows its line, realistic and depicting nature in changing lighting, in sun and fog.

In the best moments, the artist gives us something unartfully Swedish, intimate and heartfelt." (Viggo Loos)In his young years, Elias Erdtman roamed the Östgötaslätten, with another famous Linköpingsson and artist, Johan Krouthén, who was four years older.

One of Elias' oldest paintings Early spring in the Linköping region" was ...