Birgitta Glenmark - "I am abstract"

"I am abstract," said Birgitta Glenmark. And she chose to paint in exactly that - an abstract, non-figurative, expressive style rooted in early 20th-century art. With a distinct sensitivity to the meaning and qualities of color, she conveyed in her images a feeling of intense joy for life. Warm and cool colors, light and dark, were allowed to meet in ever-new constellations, creating a sense of both rhythm and movement. In her handling of color, she also drew close to music.
Birgitta was a doctor by profession and made her debut as a painter late in life, though her interest in painting had shown itself already during her childhood years, inspired by the artistic environment she grew up in. She first exhibited solo in the early 2010s and also took part in group exhibitions. By day, she used her hands with a surgeon's precision; by night, she created art with those same hands.
Birgitta painted on canvas or aluminum, using either a brush or a scraper as her tool. She applied paint - often acrylic - in thin, almost transparent layers that partially overlapped one another. Working this way, she created a sense of closeness and depth through interplay. In her images, disparate forms emerge that seem to float both behind and in front of one another, heightening the spatial impression. In her painting, color and light together give expression to an inner state, yet she generously invites the viewer to form their own interpretation as well.
In February 2026, Birgitta Glenmark suddenly fell ill with bile duct cancer, and four weeks later she passed away. She left behind a large body of work in her studio. Her husband Anders and daughter Julia turned to Formstad Auktioner for guidance, and they have now generously decided to sell the extensive collection in support of the Swedish Cancer Society (Cancerfonden). It is the family's, and Formstad's, hope that Birgitta's works will find new owners, that they will bring energy and joy of life into their new homes, and that the donation to Cancerfonden will help save lives in the future.
All works in this auction are sold in aid of Cancerfonden.
Theme image by Mattias Edwall & Richard von Hofsten.