• "Colours of My Life" Exhibition in Holvi Jyväskylä (June 16 - September 10)
• CV
• Art historian Satu Itkonen's article


I painted my first work of daisies at a course of an artist acquaintance Veikko Hirvimäki, in the early 80´s. I stopped questioning my abilities and gradually my insecurity was replaced with trust and strong belief in inner knowledge. That was a turning point in my life. I started to use my paintings in my work as a teacher. I put my work on display for the first time in 1983. Finally I left my job as a teacher and immersed myself totally in painting.

Colours are even more important to me today than before. I pay attention to colour first and only after that to the subject. I juxtapose colours boldly, in a way they warn you not to do in books. Layers of paint overlap one upon the other. Just the right shade of colour may be found after a long period of experimenting.

The milieu in my works is often nature with its trees, gardens and animals. Certain subjects and characters appear repeatedly, such as wild animals and angels. I also paint people.

My art reflects my values in life. Close and respectful relationship with nature and getting strength from it are essential in my life. My pictures have their own mythology but the stories behind them can also be ordinary: a scenery or an experience in a forest that gives me strength, a powerful dream or a hare in my garden can give impetus to my work. The way people destroy nature and use their power in a cruel way can also bring a start to my
painting. My work speaks out for more gentle and spiritual values of life.

I am happy as an artist, this is exactly what I want to do. I had to have a break in my artistic work after a ten-year period of intensive work. Time will tell how much I will paint in the future. However, a new painting is waiting for me upstairs, I have different shades of red in my mind…