*The Lights Are Not What They Seem* is a series of light-based objects by painter Oľga Paštéková featuring the motif of the firefly—a silent guide navigating the darkness. In these works, painting shifts into a new realm: the soft glow of the lamps reveals fragments of landscapes, animals, and organic forms emerging at the boundary between the visible and the invisible. The pieces create an intimate space between inner experience and the external world—a space where light signifies not certainty, but rather a quest for balance and a sensitive connection between humanity and nature.
Paštéková’s work explores ecological, social, and mythological themes, focusing on the complex relationships between humans, animals, nature, and civilization. She creates visual "landscapes" that hover between image and symbol, often drawing inspiration from mythological thought and posthumanist perspectives.
The work is accompanied by music composed by Stroon.
Oľga Paštéková (SK) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, in the studio of Prof. Daniel Richter. She has held numerous solo and group exhibitions in Slovakia and abroad and has participated in several artist residencies (Berlin, Porto, Sardinia, New York). She has also been involved in various charitable and environmentally focused art projects. She lives and works in Bratislava and Vienna.
