Riitta Hellén-Vuoti
Please tell us more about your background and how you began creating art?
I have written poetry since my early youth, when a certainty emerged within me: that I would paint and write – at some point. In high school our art teacher suggested that I paint with oils, and
that’s what I did. I also did some oil paintings while studying in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Oulu. After finishing my degrees in specialist medicine, psychiatry, and psychotherapy at the end of the 1990s, I spent more time on painting and writing. Now, I’m a full-time artist.
What does your art aim to say to the viewers?
For me, the most important thing about art is the unique experience of the viewer. At its best, a work of art is like a diamond.
Do you have any philosophy guiding your creative expression?
“Art is Freedom” - I also feel that Love is Freedom. I have written a poem and painted with the title Love is Freedom for my By the Sea series.
How would you describe your style and the work you create?
My paintings are inner images. I don’t plan them; they emerge from an inner need.
Where do you get your ideas for your works?
I’m interested in – and inspired by – the human being and the never-ending complexities of life.
What art marketing activity do you regularly put into practice that works most successfully for you?
For the past two years, I have focused intensively on painting and have participated in international exhibitions and art fairs. I have not paid enough attention to marketing my art.
Can you tell us about the process of creating your work? What is your daily routine when working?
I often wake up early in the morning. These early morning moments are especially meaningful painting time for me, but I can also paint at night. The most important thing is to paint. A painting emerges from an inner need, and I work on the meaning of the painting after finishing it. Music, literature, movies, art, people, everyday life – all these inspire me – Life.
How much planning goes into each artwork?
I don’t plan my paintings. Planning gets in the way of painting because then I feel like it’s not genuine expression. It’s meaningful when a painting emerges spontaneously.
What’s the essential element in your art?
Layers, textures, and metaphors play together, creating meaning in varying degrees of abstraction. Paintings and poems are inner images and they can sometimes be the same. I call
them poem-paintings.
In your opinion, what role does the artist have in society?
I will reflect here more on the meaning of art than the work of a single artist. I feel that human beings can make and maintain genuine contact with themselves – and life – through art. This is when we have the opportunity to maintain a genuine relationship with ourselves, our fellow humans, nature, and life, and at its best, we can reach an understanding of our own inner world, a point where art supports the reality of life. Art can also make us more conscious about our place in the cosmos. We see and experience generational trauma, and the consequences are global. Art can give a deeper meaning to our lives, transforming our appreciation of life and moving us toward peace.
Are there any projects you are currently working on and can speak about?
It was my pleasure to have my paintings showcased digitally by the Contemporary Art Collectors at the FIABCN Art Fair, Museu Maritim, Barcelona. I also have two solo exhibitions at
Galleria Tila33, Kuopio, Finland, and a third exhibition will take place later in the spring.
