Lena Cronqvist

Lena Birgitta Cronqvist Tunström (; 31 December 1938 – 29 July 2025) was a Swedish painter, graphic artist and sculptor. Considered to be one of Scandinavia's most prominent Expressionists, her biographically inspired works include self-portraits, some with her child, sometimes depicting the unpleasant features of life. She illustrated the books of her husband Göran Tunström and created lithographs for one of August Strindberg's plays. As a sculptor, she worked with glass and bronze. Her artworks have been widely exhibited and are in the collections of Nationalmuseet and Moderna Museet in Stockholm.

Life and career

Born in Karlstad on 31 December 1938, Cronqvist studied at Stockholm's Konstfack (1958–1959) and at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts (1959–1964). In 1964, she married the writer Göran Tunström who died in 2000; their son, , born in 1969, became a film director.

When she was 18, Cronqvist visited the Munch Room in Norway's National Gallery in Oslo. Edvard Munch's art left a lasting impression on her. The works she created in her "death series" are reminiscent of Munch's paintings. Girls were a main theme in paintings and sculptures, and she represented them without the common clichés of "innocent little children or as young girls with sexual undertones". She illustrated the books of her husband and created a series of lithographs for Strindberg's Ett Drömspel.

Awards In 1994, Cronqvist was awarded the Prince Eugen Medal. She received the Carnegie Art Award for Nordic Artists in 2002.