Ylva Snöfrid: From the Eyes of the Painter
In May 2018, Swedish artist Ylva Snöfrid created the four paintings that make up From the Eyes of the Painter during a two-week painting performance outside the School’s main entrance at Sveavägen 65.
Working on site, Snöfrid painted while students, staff, and visitors were able to follow the artistic process over time. The completed works were later installed through a performative dinner event in the School’s auditorium, designed by architect Ivar Tengbom in 1925.
Ylva Snöfrid, previously known as Ylva Ogland, bases her artistic practice on painting and on the relationship between artistic creation and lived experience. Over many years, she developed the figure of Snöfrid through paintings, rituals, performances, objects, publications, food, and ceremonies, gradually merging artistic persona and artistic practice.
Throughout her work, Snöfrid often creates situations in which artist and audience enter into a public relationship shaped by performance, observation, and participation. Her works frequently explore questions of identity, perception, and the role of the artist.
Ylva Snöfrid (born 1974 in Umeå, Sweden) works primarily with painting, with a particular focus on the painting process itself and its connection to personal and artistic transformation.
Reflection by Lars Strannegård (2018)
During the performance, Ylva Snöfrid sat outside the Stockholm School of Economics holding a mirror in one hand and a paintbrush in the other. She painted what she saw reflected in the mirror: her own eye and fragments of the School reflected within it.
The resulting paintings, collectively titled From the Eyes of the Painter, were installed in the four niches of the auditorium. The works create the impression of four eyes observing both lecturers and audiences.
The installation invites reflection on observation, self-awareness, and perspective. It raises questions about how we see and are seen, and about the role of reflection in understanding ourselves and the world around us.
For Lars Strannegård, the work also evokes broader discussions about visibility and observation in contemporary society, where digital technologies increasingly shape how information is collected, shared, and interpreted.
From the Eyes of the Painter reflects SSE’s ambition to encourage reflection and critical thinking. Through a simple but powerful visual gesture, the work invites viewers to consider alternative perspectives and ways of seeing.
The installation was generously donated by SSE alumni Alexandra and Michael Storåkers.