Margrethe Aanestad (1974) was born in Stavanger, a town located on the South West coast of Norway. The past 12 years she has been living between Stavanger, Norway and New York City, residing and having a studio in Brooklyn. Aanestad studied fine arts at the Rogaland Art College, Norway and holds a BA in Art & Cultural studies including art history and aesthetic philosophy from the University of Stavanger.

In her practice Aanestad mainly works with drawing, painting and sculpture in mixed media, subtly referencing landscapes and the celestial sphere, while remaining wholly nonrepresentational.

Aanestad has shown internationally over the years, so far primarily in the USA and Scandinavia. Previous solo exhibitions include Utstein Monastery/Stavanger Museum; Kunsthall Stavanger; Torrance Shipman, New York; Dimensions Variable, Miami; Open Source Gallery, New York. Selected duo- and group shows includes Sandefjord Kunstforening, Norway; Scandinavia House, New York; Dimensions Variable, Miami; Yi Gallery, New York; Tiger Strikes Asteroid, NYC; Interface gallery, Oakland; Abingdon Studios, UK; Another Space, Copenhagen. Aanestad has also over the years participated in several group- and duo shows in New York City, NY, Miami, Oakland, Costa Rica, in addition to multiple art institutions in her native Norway. Residencies include Residency Unlimited, NYC and Artists Alliance Inc., NYC.

Aanestad co-founded Prosjektrom Normanns in Stavanger in 2011, an artist-run gallery space collaborating with international and national artists, curators and artist-run spaces. She co-directed Prosjektrom Normanns until its closing in 2020.

Her works are included in private collections worldwide, and she has completed several private and public commissions both in Norway and in the USA, most recently at NYU Clive Davis institute and Stavanger New University Hospital permanent collection, curated by KORO (Art in Public Spaces, Norway).She has also worked in silkscreen, created artist books, collaborated with fashion designers and more, in addition to her main production. Aanestad is an Artist Partner with the artist run space Dimensions Variable in Miami, FL.