I am a primarily self-taught photographer and began creating digital collages as a new means of expression. In creating collages, my goal is to create images that evoke a story of some kind that often moves far beyond the relatively literal boundaries of traditional photography.

I draw from a wide range of photographic subjects such as landscapes, botanicals, and wildlife as well as urban environments and people. I follow an intuitive yet somewhat ordered process of layering or merging portions of photos until an image that speaks to me emerges. Most often this is more likely a random bit of serendipity than deliberate intent. Images often suggest a sense of time and place or reflect a rich and ethereal interplay of color, shape, or form. Images may provoke an indefinable question that does not readily yield answers without further study and reflection. Ultimately, my collages provide a vehicle to stimulate both my imagination and that of the viewer, leaving one free to interpret and create an individual sense of meaning and value.

Art between naivety and the seriousness of life:

As a child, I painted a lot with (colored) pencils and acrylics. Since I was 17, I have found further means of expression with oil paints on large canvases.

My style is characterized by contrasting colors and a youthful charm. In doing so, I am always looking for new color combinations.

Through figurative paintings and portraits, I document the hidden escapism in our modern society – in works like “Aperol” and “Physically Present,” the pursuit of happiness through cheap pleasures such as alcohol and social media is thematized. They are inspired by my own experiences and those of my social environment.

In contrast, I also create abstract paintings with luminous oil pastel chalk, which remind me of the simplicity of childhood with their cheerful patterns and colors.

So my art is – just like me – torn between childish naivety and the seriousness of life.

Since forever have women been the subject of great art, but rarely were we allowed to create great art. As a female artist living in the 21st Century, I find great inspiration in the female icons of the past, despite the societal pressures that tell me their beauty and success renders them irrelevant. Famous women from Marie Antoinette to Miley Cyrus, have served as profound sources of inspiration for me, whether it be their distinctive style or spirit. My work is driven by a profound curiosity to understand the reasons behind our tendency to elevate women to legendary status, where their images become eternal, only to later tear them down. Through my creative process, I aim to explore how the images of these influential women, given by pop culture, impact and shape my own artistic depictions of them.

Ultimately, my work serves as a reflection and exploration of this complex dynamic. While my intention is to showcase the vibrant and visually captivating image that pop culture has crafted around the women I idolize, I also remain very conscious of the underlying darkness that hides beneath the surface of their seemingly lighthearted images.

As a Finn, I grew up on satire, dark humor, and happy endings and that is well reflected in my work. At first glance, my cartoonish mixed media paintings may depict my subject’s pop culture image perfectly, which is usually colorful, ditzy, and lacking in substance, but I am actually satirizing our perceptions of my female heroines. We are all guilty of prioritizing a person’s image over the narrative.

I choose to work with acrylics, rhinestones, and glitters because their vibrant hues and textures are well suited for creating eye-catching artworks that are unique to me, and perfect for the subject matter. Just like the women I paint, I am an unconventional woman in the eyes of my society and with my art practice I want to invite viewers to look past the glittering images and see the depth and complexity of the women I paint, myself included.

Since forever women have been the subject of great art, but rarely were we allowed to create great art. As a female artist living in the 21st Century, I find great inspiration in the female icons of the past. Famous women from Marie Antoinette to Miley Cyrus, have served as profound sources of inspiration for me, due to their distinctive styles and unique spirits. In my art practice, I explore the contrast between the public portrayal of the women I admire and their true selves. My aim is to discover how the images of these influential women, given by pop culture, impact and shape my own artistic impressions of them. Just like the women I paint, I am an unconventional woman in the eyes of my society and with my art practice I want to invite viewers to look past the glittering images and see the depth and complexity of the women I paint, myself included.

Ultimately, my work serves as a reflection and exploration of this complex dynamic. While my intention is to showcase the vibrant and visually captivating image that pop culture has crafted around the women I idolize, I also remain very conscious of the underlying darkness that hides beneath the surface of their seemingly lighthearted images.

As a Finn, I grew up on satire, dark humor, and happy endings and that is well reflected in my work. At first glance, my cartoonish mixed media paintings may depict my subject’s pop culture image perfectly, which is usually colorful, ditzy, and lacking in substance, but I am actually satirizing our perceptions of my female heroines. We are all guilty of prioritizing a person’s image over the narrative. But whether the viewer understands this duality or not, I still want them to have a good time when viewing my artwork.

I choose to work with acrylics, rhinestones, and glitters because their vibrant hues and plastic textures are well suited for creating eye-catching artworks that are unique to me, and perfect for the subject matter.

My parents taught me to open my eyes to the different wonders of creation, and from childhood on, I have tried to reflect these impressions in my paintings. Animals in all of their unique and rich beauty, and their emotions, were my main topic and will ever be. I try to give my painted animals a soul by the look of their eyes, and hope it can be seen. Showing my artwork to the public is also an attempt to support the awareness of the voiceless creatures we should protect instead of abusing and destroying them.

Out of an array of colors, my pointillist pieces come to life helping me to construct through the use of a computer painting program, a means of creating a drama consisting of reflections of women’s inner stories. While working, I employ elements of collage in my paintings to conjure up images created from a mixture of fantasy, mood, and symbolism, blended together in a variety of ways to create my own world.

Photography has been my passion since early childhood. My motivation is to discover and capture the beauty, even when it is not always readily self-evident, that surrounds us continuously in all areas of our everyday lives. I believe the finest images are those that are serious yet playful, aesthetically appealing yet a bit quirky. As both an artist and an admirer, my favorite photographs tend to be ones whose contents speak loudly for themselves — even when it is not immediately clear exactly what they are saying. They seek to inspire their viewers to wrestle with their intriguing content and, as a result, ponder various aspects of our surrounding world in new and unique ways.

I see myself as an artist/designer who is fascinated by art, likes to go beyond the boundaries of a canvas, and influences the viewer to think bigger, unpeeling the various layers of perception and dimensions of being. My artwork pushes itself out of the envelope, daring you to expand your own conceptions and interpretations.

Abstract artist, wildlife, and macro photographer, Diana is inspired by patterns in nature.

Repetition of lines and shapes in feathers, plumages, spider webs, compound eyes, and scales of butterfly wings; symmetries, meanders, and fractals found in landscapes, plants, mollusk shells, and coral formations – these natural elements are fascinating to find and capture. They are an inspiration for her paintings, which transform flat surfaces into three-dimensional spaces through an interplay of lines, values, and shapes.

While capturing the beauty of nature, Diana’s goal is to bring awareness to marine ecological issues, such as coral bleaching. A scuba diver with over 25 years of experience, Diana had seen firsthand the damage human actions caused to coral reefs. These heavens of life and tranquility will be lost if humans don’t work together to protect them.