Interest in art in developed countries remains relevant at all times!
In Finland, contemporary art continues to develop and attracts many fans with its courage, self-sufficiency and, of course, unique national techniques.
Today, as many years ago, Finnish contemporary art reveals a special connection between Finns and nature. Scandinavian design attracts with its simplicity and natural notes. The theme of interaction between man and all living things that surround him still occupies a key place in Finnish contemporary art. Finnish artists, photographers, designers continue to draw inspiration for their work from the truly living and fundamental: man, nature, beauty, music.
The correspondent of the cultural and information portal Finmaa met with the artist Kaarina Helenius, well-known in the circles of Finnish modern painting, and tried to find out what and how she lives contemporary artist in Finland.
Finmaa:— What does contemporary art mean in Finland today?
— I would characterize contemporary art as works made using different, new technical techniques. Old techniques can also be used, but with a new look at old things.
Finmaa:— How in demand is contemporary art, in terms of interest in it from real buyers? Is it possible to earn a living doing this in Finland?
— Contemporary art very popular in Finland. Finns are especially interested in the work of young artists. However, there are not many artists in Finland who make a living only from art. Usually the artist has vocational education and performs other types of work in parallel. I, for example, am graphic designer. I have my own advertising agency and during the day I work in my office. I like to do both, so I enjoy doing both types of work.
Finmaa:— You live and work in the city of Hämeenlinna. In your opinion, is this city, or Finland in general, a good atmosphere for creativity?
— Hämeenlinna is a small city that is conveniently located in relation to other cultural cities in Finland. From here it is easy to get to Helsinki or Tampere. Hämeenlinna is a very calm city, it’s safe to live here and easy to do creative work. For example, my studio, where I paint my paintings, is located on the territory of former barracks. There is a very quiet and calm atmosphere here, beautiful nature and a great place for a walk.
Finmaa:— What inspires you in your work? How are the images in your paintings born?
-I am inspired by music, fashion and nature. I create all the pictures in my head, and when I start drawing, I already know what should happen.
Finmaa:— How long does one work take? Are your paintings easy for you or is it really difficult and painstaking work?
— One painting takes approximately 2–4 weeks. I use oil paints, which I apply in strokes to the material. I first draw all the images in my head, a lot of ideas come to mind. If my work contains human images, then I invite real people and make sketches from life, and then, based on the sketch, I begin to draw a picture. I try to draw the sketch as best as possible, since time is always limited. I work in my studio in the evenings after my day job and on weekends.
Finmaa:— Do you draw life, is this direction more in demand today or is it your self-expression?
— In my works I don’t try to create fashionable pictures or focus on naked people. I always want to show feelings or events. Man is only part of the idea.
Finmaa:— How did you get interested in drawing? Where did you start?
— I have a professional art education. I studied at an art school in the city of Hyvinkää. I also have a background in commerce and graphic design.
I became interested in drawing by accident, at the age of 18. I liked this lesson and went to study professional artist. A little later, I realized that I liked this activity and I want to work seriously in this field. After art school I studied graphic design, which I also really liked. In Finland it is difficult to be just an artist, despite support from the state. This is how my career in the arts began. Later I had my own exhibitions, which took place in different cities Finland.
Finmaa:— What difficulties does an artist or designer face in their work in Finland?
— In Finland, artists can count on financial support from the state, but this is not enough for normal life. The economic situation in the country also affects the sale of paintings.
Finmaa:— What are you working on now?
— Now I am drawing pictures for my next exhibition, which will be held in Russia, in the city of St. Petersburg, in May 2016. I am also planning several exhibitions in Finland for 2016 and 2017.
Finmaa:— What else do you like to do in your free time? Do you have a hobby?
— I have almost no free time, but I like to run and sometimes go to the gym.
Finmaa:— Do you like to travel? Did you manage to visit Russia and which city? What did you like and remember?
— The first time I was able to visit Russia was in March 2015. Then I lived in the Finland House on Bolshaya Konyushennaya Street. I really liked this city and I came for the second time, in September. I really like Russian national cuisine. People in St. Petersburg are also very friendly and welcoming. I'm very interested contemporary creativity and design by young Russian artists. There are many design centers, exhibition galleries and fashion stores in St. Petersburg. I don’t speak Russian, I only know a few words, but I would like to learn this language. I haven’t been to other cities in Russia yet, but I’m ready to come to St. Petersburg again and again!
Finmaa:- If you have a dream?
— I really want to continue doing what I love and create new projects. I recently worked on the design of a line of silver jewelry for a Finnish company. The project was very successful and I hope to continue working in this area.
Finmaa, 2016.
Hameenlinna, Finland
Finnish artist Berndt Lindholm (1841-1914).Berndt Adolf Lindholm Berndt Adolf Lindholm, (Loviisa 20 August 1841 – 15 May 1914 in Gothenburg, Sweden) was a Finnish artist, is also considered one of the first Finnish impressionists. Lindholmwas also the first Scandinavian artist to go to Paris to study. PHe received his first drawing lessons in Porvoo from the artist Johan Knutson, and then transferred to the Finnish Art Society drawing school in Turku. In 1856-1861. he is a student of Ekman.V1863-1865 Lindholm continued his studies abroad at the Düsseldorf Academy of Arts.He left Germany and, together with ( Hjalmar Munsterhelm) Magnus Hjalmar Munsterhjelm (1840-1905)(Tulos October 19, 1840 - April 2, 1905) returned to his homeland in Karlsruhe (1865-1866), where he began taking private lessons fromHans Fredrik Gude (1825-1903)and then visited Paris twice in 1873-1874, where his teacher was Leon Bonnat. In Francecommunicated closely with the Barbizonian Charles-François Daubigny.He also appreciated the work of Théodore Rousseau, and admired the work of Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot.The first solo exhibition was held in Helsinki in the autumn of 1870, where Lindholm received high praise. In 1873, the Academy of Arts gave the title of academician for the painting “Forest in the Province of Savolas” and others.,in 1876 he was awarded a medal from the Philadelphia World's Fair; in 1877 he was awarded the Finnish State Prize. Lindholmlived mostly abroad. In 1876 he moved to Gothenburg and worked as a museum curator (1878-1900). He also taught at the Gothenburg School of Drawing and Painting, then was elected President of the Academy of Fine Arts and a member of the Royal Swedish Academy.He was more versatile than his artist friend and rival Magnus Hjalmar Munsterhelm, who remained faithful to the romantic landscape all his life.Initially Lindholm also painted typical romantic landscapes, and then, under the influence of French plein air painting, he gradually becomes close to realism. Towards the end of his career he switched only to coastal and seascapes. It is also known that Lindholm participated in the illustration of the book by Zacharias Topelius - (Zacharias Topelius, 1818-1898) - one of the most remarkable representatives of Finnish literature. A poet, novelist, storyteller, historian and publicist, he earned love and recognition both in his homeland and far beyond its borders. Topelius wrote in Swedish, although he was also fluent in Finnish. Topelius's works have been translated into more than twenty languages. He had an unusually multifaceted talent and amazing efficiency, full meeting his works number thirty-four volumes. (Z. Topelius. Travels around Finland. Edition by F. Tilgman, 1875. Translated from Swede. F. Heuren. Contains many engravings from original paintings by A. von Becker, A. Edelfelt, R. V. Ekman, V. Holmberg, K.E. Janson, O. Kleine, I. Knutson, B. Lindholm, G. Munsterhelm and B. Reingold). Lindholm's 10 illustrations are dedicated to the Imatra Falls. In Finland, the artist's works from the period of his stay in France have not been fully appreciated; almost all of them are in private collections.
Rocky beach . Next... ">
Rocks illuminated by the sun.
Edge of a pine forest.
Forest landscape with the figure of a woodcutter.
River flowing through rocky terrain
Oat harvest.
Winter landscape in the moonlight
View from the shore.
Boats on the pier
Stacks.
Landscape with birch trees
Seascape.
Seascape.
View of the rocks.
Yearning
Sunlight V forest.
View of Ladoga.
Fishermen in the morning fog
Ships on the horizon.
Montmarte, Paris.
From the island of Porvoo
Cows in the pasture
Culture and art are the heritage and heritage of every state. “The Land of a Thousand Lakes” is not only a skiing and fishing paradise for travelers and tourists, but also a place for various art critics and simply connoisseurs of creativity. Art, in particular painting, is very developed in Finland. Many art galleries, museums and exhibitions will delight even the most sophisticated connoisseurs fine arts.
Artists from the country of Suomi, who received European education in the nineteenth century, became the main and driving factor that gave impetus to the development of fine art in Finland. Before you start meeting representatives Finnish painting, let's get acquainted with the work of “father Finnish art and painting" by Robert Ekman.
Robert Wilhelm Ekman
Born in 1808, the artist in his paintings depicted the life of ordinary Finnish peasants, all the hardships of their life, focused society’s attention on social policy Finnish state in relation to common people. When Robert turned 16, he went to Stockholm to study at the Swedish Academy of Arts. As a young and brilliant talent, Ekman received a Swedish scholarship for his talent, and later his vocation as an artist led him to go to study in Italy and France, and then to Holland. The master of the brush spent seven whole years in these countries from 1837 to 1844.
Returning back to the country of Suomi, Robert Wilhelm settled in the city of Turku, where he began painting the local cathedral with his wall frescoes and drawings. After which he founded a drawing school in the city, which he headed until 1873. He very clearly outlined the gulf that existed between the nobility and the peasants. The artist’s paintings shocked everyone with their unique and unimagined realism. The “father of Finnish painting and art” died in 1873.
Akseli Waldemar Gallen Kallela (Gallen-Kallela Akseli)
Akseli Gallen Kallela was born in the small Finnish town of Bjorneborg ( modern name- Pori) in April 1863. A fighter for the independence of Finland, the artist in his work tried in every possible way to depict a call to the nation to fight for the independence of their country. The modernism inherent in the painter allowed Axel Gallen Kallela to create very realistic paintings. After graduating from Finnish civil war(1918), the artist began to study heraldry and create flag designs. In the middle of the twentieth century, the artist lived and worked for some time in the United States of America, where he successfully held exhibitions of his works. The painter died in 1931 in Stockholm, he died of pneumonia.
Conrad Oskar Kleineh
The most famous Finnish marine landscape painter was born in September 1846 in the capital of Finland. Oscar's German roots “came to the rescue”, which allowed him to study in Germany, namely in Dusseldorf. Kleinech later continued his studies in St. Petersburg and Karlsruhe. The marine painter's greatest popularity was brought to him by paintings depicting sea still lifes and landscapes; one original work was even exhibited in the St. Petersburg Hermitage. The artist died in his hometown of Helsinki in 1919.
Fanny (Maria) Churberg born in Finland December 12, 1845 in Vaasa. Finnish landscape artist, one of greatest masters of her time. Her father Matthias (Matias Churberg) came from a farming family, but was a doctor by profession, and her mother Maria was the daughter of a priest. Fanny was the third child in a family of seven children.Four of her brothers and sisters died in early childhood, and so Fanny grew up with two older brothers, Waldemar and Torsten. When Fanny was twelve years old her mother died and she had to take most of responsibility for housekeeping.She was later sent to a girls' school in Porvoo and returned to Vaasa when she turned 18. INHer father died when she was 20 years old.Fanny looked after him day and night in recent months his life.After the death of her father, she and her brothers moved to Helsinki, where they lived with their aunt. Fanny had a passion for drawing since childhood, and in 1865 finally started my artistic training in Helsinki with private lessons from Alexander Frosterus-Saltin, Emma Gylden and Adolf Berndt Lindholm ( Alexandra Frosterus-Såltin, Emma Gyldén and Berndt Adolf Lindholm).While continuing her studies in Düsseldorf in Germany, she always returned to Finland for the summer and painted a lot.She was one of the first Finnish artists to go on artistic trips to France in Paris.Although Fanny's work remained largely in the style of the Düsseldorf school landscape painting, she openly expressed her enthusiasm for the image above all rural areas with her dramatic situations, relying on the technique of quick brushstrokes and modesty of color.Her work differed sharply from the work of her contemporaries, it depended on her own feelings of the subjects, for example, the tense atmosphere before a thunderstorm in an open area or the deep, swampy core of a forest. She perceived all this in her own way, in a Finnish way... I must say, What exhibition works Fanny was subject to strong criticism during her time, which, of course, undermined her fortitude and raised doubts; she sometimes lost faith in her talent, but continued to write for herself.
In the forest.
Old Vaasa, Fanny's birthplace.Drawing from 1840. Johan Knutsson Vaasa is a maritime city located in western Finland on the shores of the Gulf of Bothnia. The city is the administrative center of the province of Ostrobothnia , it was in this province that Fanny’s father had an old estate, in which, having grown up, Fanny and her brothers planned to run a farm as a child... But fate decreed otherwise...
Landscape overlooking the river. The painting probably depicts the harvesting and drying of reeds on boulders.
Place on the Rhine The painting was painted while Fanny was studying in Düsseldorf, when a powerful trend in painting from life developed in artistic circles in Germany, when nature began to be considered their teacher. Artists usually went in batches to the southern Rhine....
Landscape with stacks.
Winter rye in stacks.
Spring landscape.
Waterfall.
Weathered rocks overgrown with forest.
Lunar landscape.
Forest (sketch).
Forest (sketch).
Old tree (sketch).
Summer greens.
August.
Autumn landscape.
Evening.
Winter evening.
Winter landscape.
Winter landscape after sunset.
Winter landscape.
Uusimaa.Landscape.
Twilight in the forest.
Scenery.
Lake in the Alps.
Birch trees by the water.
Pine.
In life, she was as lonely as this pine tree of hers... Fanny, despite the fruitful years after her studies in terms of her career as an artist - she left 300 works during this time, still lived a rather short and sad life. After the death of her parents, She still had a house and, despite the fact that the elders, the brothers. It was to them, the two older brothers, that she devoted her life and the artist’s earnings, not so great, went to support them. The old estate, which had once generated income, went for debts. Fanny became very attached to her brothers, but when she was already 32 years old, one of the brothers married and left, and when Fanny was already 37, the second died of long-term tuberculosis. She drew until she was 35 years old, and then she no longer had the desire to draw, but she remained aware of artistic life. At 37 years old, after the death of her brother, Fanny, who was already not in brilliant health, had neither the desire nor the willpower to live, and a quiet, cold October morning 1882 she left...
Lunar landscape.
Morning mood.
Summer landscape.
Scenery.
Landscape in Lapland.
Still life with vegetables and smoked herring.
Still life
Albert Gustav Aristide Edelfelt (1854 –1905)
Albert Edelfelt was born in 1854 in Finland near Porvo. His father was an architect. From his father he adopted a love of music and drawing. However, the mother was the closest person to the future artist. Albert Edelfelt was in many ways the creation of his ambitious mother.
Portrait of the artist's mother. 1883
The boy received his first painting lessons at the Finnish school art society in Helsinki. Deciding to devote himself to painting, he entered the Academy of Arts in Antwerp, but a year later he moved to Paris, where he took lessons from L. Jerome.
Representative realistic direction. Experienced the influence of impressionism. Author of historical canvases, paintings from folk life, landscapes, portraits, marked by freedom and expressiveness artistic form, subtle rendering of the light-air environment, festive brightness of color.
Already at the age of twenty-three, Edelfelt became the most prominent figure in Finnish painting and led the struggle younger generation artists for realism and work from life. Albert initially intended to become a historical artist. They expected patriotic paintings from him. Most famous painting This plan became “Duke Charles’s Desecration of the Remains of K. Fleming” (1878). This story highlights the struggle for power in Finland that unfolded at the end of the 16th century.
Duke Charles's desecration of the remains of K. Fleming. 1878
The painting “Queen Blanca with Child” (1877) attracts with its wonderful play of colors and the freshness of youth.
But gradually living life native land attracts him more and more. The following works of the painter were created in the style of realistic images folk life. In his homeland, Albert traveled with fishermen to the open sea more than once, and then in a studio in Heiko he specially installed a sawn fishing boat for precise details. The success of the painting “Funeral of a Child” (1879), as well as the real success of the painting “On the Sea” (1883), made Edelfelt a recognized master in his homeland.
Child's funeral. 1879
At sea. 1883
Most of all, A. Edelfelt’s reputation as a national artist was confirmed by his paintings from life ordinary people Finland: “Boys by the Water” (1884), “Girl with a Rake” (1886), “Women from Ruoholahti” (1887).
Russian critic V.V. Stasov wrote: “The best of all the Finns, of course, is Edelfelt, and his most remarkable painting is “The Laundresses” (1889), full of healthy, fresh realism and life.” This painting remained in Russia, and since 1930 it has been in the Hermitage.
Laundresses. 1889
The attention of viewers is always attracted by the painting “In the Luxembourg Garden” (1887), imbued with a truly “Parisian spirit”. In his plein air works of these years, A. Edelfelt paid a lot of attention to the problems of light and colors.
In the Luxembourg Gardens. 1887
Having toured Europe, Edelfelt stopped for a long time in St. Petersburg. He first came to St. Petersburg in 1881. Russian artists and society greeted A. Edelfelt with delight. In 1881, the young Finnish painter presented his works to the court of the St. Petersburg Academy. He was a great success: he was awarded the title of academician and a personal exhibition was organized in Tsarskoe Selo. Edelfelt was introduced royal family. At the request of Emperor Alexander III, he made a copy of the painting “On the Sea” and made a number of commissioned works. During the same period, the artist created several genre portraits, of which the most popular was the portrait of the artist’s sister Bertha with a dog at her dacha in Heiko.
Good friends. 1881
Under the title "Good Friends" (1881), repetitions of this painting are kept in the Athenaeum and in Gothenburg. A painting similar in nature, “In the Nursery” (1885), was purchased Alexander III for the Gatchina Palace. The Athenium also exhibits a portrait of Sophie Manzei created during these years.
Portrait of Sophie Manzei.
Thanks to the popularity and authority of A. Edelfelt, Finnish art received recognition in Russia. In St. Petersburg, Edelfelt met young figures of new Russian art, Sergei Diaghilev and Alexander Benois: “We literally hung on Edelfelt, in our eyes his head was surrounded by a halo of Parisian recognition,” Benoit later wrote. The closeness of Finnish and Russian artists was marked by several joint exhibitions. The largest of them was in 1898 in the museum at the Baron Stieglitz School. The works of young artists at that time were presented there: Serov, Repin, Vrubel - from Russia; and M. Enkel, Gallen-Kallela, Järnefeld - from the Finnish side. The exhibition aroused great interest in Finnish culture and Finland itself among the Russian public.
But the main form of creativity for A. Edelfelt in mature years was portraiture. Edelfelt worked extensively and successfully in the portrait genre. Phe wrote about the order of the French governmentportrait of Louis Pasteur (1885). In the 1880s and 1890s, Edelfelt worked extensively on orders from the Russian royal court. But in addition to official portraits, he created beautiful creations: “Portrait of a Mother”, “Storyteller Larin Paraske”, portraits of the great Finnish actresses Aine Akte and Ida Aalberg.
Landscape occupies relatively little space in Edelfelt's work. However, the Hermitage has his works: “View of Porvo”, watercolor “View of the Lake in Kaukola”, etching “Pine in the Snow”. The Hermitage also presents a number of drawings and illustrations by the remarkable Finnish master.
An outline of Edelfelt's work would be incomplete without mentioning his last job: In 1900-1904, the artist was busy creating a monumental panel in the assembly hall of the University of Helsinki on the theme: " Grand opening University in Turku in 1640." The composition was made in the form of a ceremonial procession in costumes of the 17th century.
Inauguration of the university in Turku in 1640 1902 (Clickable)
Albert Edelfelt died suddenly at his dacha near Porvo in August 1905. This was a blow for Finnish art. But his paintings are as interesting and understandable to us as they were to his contemporaries.
Vladimir Losev
Young woman in the boudoir. 1879
On the Champs Elysees. 1886
Portrait of the artist's sister Bertha Edelfelt. 1884
Portrait of the artist's mother. 1902
Woman under an umbrella. 1886
Children of Tsar Alexander III
Parisian model. 1885
Mary Magdalene. 1891
Grief. 1894
Finnish fishermen. 1898
Christ and Mary Magdalene. 1890
Portrait of Louis Pasteur. 1885
Boys playing on the shore. 1884
Small boat. 1884
Woman in a boat. 1886
Neighbors sitting outside the church after mass. 1887
Karelian women. 1887
Girl, knitting sock. 1886
Strawberries.
Pensive woman near the church. 1893
Solveig
Divine service on the Uusimaa archipelago.
Returning from christening.
Portrait of a young woman. 1891
Reading Parisian woman. 1880
Portrait of Madame Valerie-Rado. 1888
