Ulf Trotzig was born in Jämtland and trained at Valand School of Art and in Paris before settling in Lund with his wife, the author Birgitta Trotzig. After having worked in an idiom inspired by cubism, Ulf Trotzig developed a non-figurative style. Later, he returned to figurative motifs such as birds taking flight, landscapes, and female figures. The style is rhythmically flowing, light, and calligraphic. There are similarities to art informel and abstract expressionism, but also to Japanese ink art.