“I’ve always been attracted by my surrounding nature. Forms of the landscape, shades of color, the shadows and light. Trees, rocks, the sea, lakes and mountains. From this starting point it is no wonder that I also draw very much inspiration from my surroundings.
Light is to me one technique of painting. Using colors and strokes, darkness and light, accents and depth, but with an abstract, more vibrant and immaterial approach than in traditional fine arts. Light is a very fundamental part of our perception of space which is why I also always try to evoke a dialogue between my work and the space it inhabits.
Light can be manipulated in many ways, but whatever I do it remains something I can’t touch. That fascinates me. Our visual perception is not just what we see, it’s also how we look at it and how we interpret and understand our perception. This is the key idea for me when I’m working with light. I try to find forms, shapes and colors that interests and moves me and bring it forward for the viewer to hold.
The greatest beauty I’ve witnessed is always a show by nature. A sunrise over a calm ocean, a quiet forest in the middle of winter, a sunset on distant mountains, towering cumulonimbus clouds, the blue hour.. The examples are abundant, however, this theme never gets old or boring, no matter how many times you experience it. The sun and it’s reflections is the light that eventually every other light source inevitably is compared to, whatever the purpose.
That’s also what I am striving for in my works. To create an atmosphere that goes beyond the actual work, creates a context that is personal not only for me but also for the spectator.
In recent years my working with oil and watercolors has been characterized by my need to express the natural light that I see. It’s an interplay between what is actually there if you really look, and what I see inside. Both views as truthful to reality.
The fundamental principle, or force, why I’m doing what I do, is my constant need for self-expression. It’s one of those things that according to my experience makes human existence worthwhile. I think that need is within all of us, in some of us more than in others but nevertheless. The expression can be mirrored, self-made, expressed on many levels but fundamentally it stays the same; we want to find meaning. For me my expression is through the arts. And with everything I do, I try to follow the simple notion of just following myself, wherever it might lead. This pierces my creative process from start to finish, whether I’m working on a theatre piece, painting or playing music.”
Helsinki, 1.6.2018
