Gustaf Lilliestierna is a Stockholm-based artist whose work centers on the ontology of images. He holds a BA in Fine Art from Konstfack, an MFA from Goldsmiths, University of London, and has studied at Parsons The New School for Design in New York. He has also completed advanced philosophy coursework at Uppsala University, exploring topics such as imagination, art, and perception.

Gustaf’s practice begins with a mental image, a specific vision that arises internally. He analyzes this image through associative, logical, and dramaturgical principles, using it as a model for painting. Yet his work also questions the nature of images themselves: How do we distinguish a depiction from an image? Can we describe an image without distorting it? His paintings often evoke ambivalence, inviting the viewer into a similar mental process, reflecting on visual language through their own associations.

With a background that spans fine art, philosophy, and even physics, Gustaf’s practice blurs the line between the visible and the imagined, proposing that the true artwork lies not in the image itself, but in the mental images it provokes.