Swimming and art!

A surprising and fun opportunity turned up when my collaborator Sibel Kantola asked if we could show our waterproof Christmas themed posters in the local swimming centre, Impivaara. They liked the idea and now our posters are next to the children’s pools!

Jussi Helle wrote a press release for us in Finnish:

”Joulun hetkiä” -taidenäyttely Impivaaran uimahallissa 7.-31. 12. 2022

Sibel Kantola ja Jenny Wiik yhdistävät hyvinvoinnin ja kuvataiteen

Sympaattisista, hyvää mieltä hehkuvista töistään tunnetut kuvataiteilijat Sibel Kantola ja Jenny Wiik halusivat yllättää turkulaiset tuomalla joulun uimahalliin. Heistä on tärkeää ja jopa maagista esitellä taidettaan odottamattomissa paikoissa, missä kaikenlaiset ja -ikäiset ihmiset liikkuvat. Taide myös sopii heidän mukaansa mainiosti yhteen liikunnan kanssa.

-Hyvinvointi ja taide yhdistyy tässä konkreettisesti ja kätevästi. Voit katsoa näyttelyn ja pulahtaa sen jälkeen uimaan – tervetuloa nauttimaan taiteesta uimapuvussa, Sibel Kantola hymyilee.

-Sain idean aloitettuani vesijuoksuharrastuksen. Ajattelin, että juostessa olisi paljon mukavampaa katsella taidetta kuin tyhjiä seiniä, Kantola kertoo.

Kantolalla ja Wiikillä oli sopivasti valmiina vedenkestäviä jouluaiheisia julisteita, jotka olivat esillä viime vuonna joulumarkkinoiden aikaan Luostarin välikadulla Turun keskustassa. Nyt Impivaaran uimahallin lastenaltaan viereistä lautaseinää koristaa yhteensä 10 julistemaalausta, viisi kummaltakin taiteilijalta.

Jenny Wiikin teokset ovat abstrakteja vesiväritöitä, Sibel Kantolan maalaukset puolestaan joulusia maisemia, näkymiä tai sympaattisia eläinhahmoja.

Kantolan teokset on alkujaan tehty joulukortteihin, joita hän on vuosittain luonut vesi- tai musteväreillä. Molempien taiteilijoiden työt ovatkin yhä saatavana myös joulukortteina. Niitä, samoin kuin julisteiden originaaleja, voi ihailla Kantolan emännöimässä Mökki Galleriassa Kaarinassa 22.12. asti.

Tietoja taiteilijoista:

Jenny Wiik syntyi 1978 Hyvinkäällä suomenruotsalaiseen perheeseen. Hän asui lapsuudessaan 8 vuotta vanhempiensa kanssa Ruotsissa, palasi näiden mukana Hyvinkäälle, kävi taidepainotteisen lukion Helsingissä, käväisi opiskelmassa Uudessakaarlepyyssä ja Tukholmassa, mutta juurtui lopulta Turkuun, jossa opiskeli, opetti ja tutki taidehistoriaa Åbo Akademissa. Kuvittajanuransa Jenny Wiik aloitti jo teini-iässä 1997. Hän on toiminut freelancer-kuvittajana monenlaisille organisaatioille ja firmoille niin muoti-, opetus- kuin pelialallakin. Wiik on myös graafinen suunnittelija, kirjailija, kielikonsultti ja taidekriitikko. Wiikin taiteessa on paljon filosofista ja eettistä pohdintaa. Sen ytimessä ovat ovat kestävyys, ekologisuus, kiltteys ja ihmisarvot.

Sibel Kantola syntyi 1978 Turkissa, josta perhe muutti isän töiden perässä Moskovaan. Siellä hän aloitti lukioikäisenä yksityiset kuvataidetunnit. Aikuistuttuaan hän muutti Yhdysvaltojen Kentuckyyn, jossa opiskeli Louisvillen yliopistossa graafista suunnittelua ja kuvataiteita (Bachelor of Arts). Kantola on asunut myös Etelä-Koreassa, jossa hänellä oli lukuisia menestyksekkäitä taidenäyttelyitä. Nykyään hän asuu perheineen Kaarinassa ja on emännöinyt noin 200-vuotta vanhaan työläismökiin perustamaansa Mökki Galleriaa yli viisi vuotta.Kantola on paitsi taidemaalari ja galleristi myös graafikko, vaatesuunnittelija ja kirjankustantaja. Hän on kuvittanut neljä satukirjaa.

Näyttelyaika: 7.-31.12.2022 uimahallin aukioloaikoina ma-to klo 6-20, pe klo 11-18, la-su klo 9-17, Impivaaran uimahalli, Uimahallinpolku 4, 20320 Turku

Mökki Gallerian puolesta, Jussi Helle, tiedottaja 050 320 5920

www.mokkigalleria.fi

Lisätiedot ja haastattelut: galleristi Sibel Kantola, puh. 044 306 1970 s-posti: belgrafik (at) gmail.com

Osoite: Mökki Galleria, Iso-Rauhalinnantie 5, 20780 Kaarina

Okeanos

Okeanos is the name of my most recent solo exhibition, but it is also the name of a fictional world. I’ve written occasionally here about my never ending “book/graphic novel” project, that actually started from a seed sown ten years ago. I still want to create that graphic novel, but I haven’t been able to consistently take time for it. However, I decided to create another solo exhibition with paintings again. It is actually easier than creating a graphic novel, hahah. Okeanos is the name of the fantasy world in the story. And several of the paintings in the exhibition are visual fragments of the world and the story.

Grasslands in the middle and Branches I and II on the top and bottom. Oil paintings, 2021-2022.

The exhibition was in august in Mökki Galleria again, since my collaboration with the owner (and artist) Sibel Kantola is very fruitful and inspiring. We are planning more exciting things in the future. But first, in October-November, we will both take part in a group exhibition, PINK, in Helsinki, in AVA International. My paintings “Pan” (the featured image) and “Mother of Pearl” will be there. 15 % of sales go to the Cancer Foundation, so I am very happy and proud to take part of it, and I’m hoping my paintings would find new homes.

From Okeanos all other paintings are still for sale. The watercolor with leaves and rain drops was sold (After the First Rain), which makes me feel like making more of these type of (photo)realistic watercolors. It was something I loved doing in my 20s, but took a break from the past 10 years. However, painting will have to wait until next year, since I am about to finally finish my Master’s thesis in service design this Autumn.

And if you read this far, I am open for new illustration or graphic design commissions and gigs from January onwards! I’m also very experienced with art/illustration/design workshops (currently I have manga comic drawing with kids)! If you want to contact me, write to jennykwiik@gmail.com, or DM me in Instagram for example 🙂

And all my new and previous paintings can be seen on the Fine art page.

Warm Autumn greetings

Chromophilia

In Autumn 2021 I took part in two exhibitions in collaboration with artist Sibel Kantola. Chromophilia was the first one, with prints made of our paintings for outdoors hanging on the beautiful street Luostarin välikatu in central Turku. Artist Paul Krispijn also took part with a light installation that was visible in the autumn evening. In December Sibel and I also made a Christmas/winter themed exhibition in the same frames. The frames were built in June 2021 by Hasan Al-Rubaye, with funding from Stiftelsen för Åbo Akademi. They were made for the photography exhibition Love Crossing Boundaries, organized by Nana Blomqvist. Nana gave me free hands to create art for the frames, and I invited Sibel Kantola to join me.

This collaboration was intense but very joyous. And we did not put any breaks on our love for colors (hence the title). Below you can see my half of the artworks from Chromophilia and secondly from the December exhibition.

Sibel and I are working on a webpage together, where we will further exhibit our collaborations and see where we can take it! But those are the plans for 2022.

I want to take the opportunity to wish you a Happy Yule and Happy New Year 2022. 2021 was intense and extremely productive for me. So much so, it has been hard to keep this webpage updated. If you use Tiktok, please go check out @kiiwyn, since I post there quite frequently, and I’m enjoying the simple video format very much.

Long time no update

Wow, I totally lost track of updating this blog after Covid 19 started. At the same, in March-April 2020, I also moved and started a new job. The new job is a longer employment, for which I am very grateful, considering the times we’ve all been living since early 2020.

I’m currently working as a graphic designer and illustrator for a research and development project called Resursstarka barn (Resourceful children).

Resursstarka barn (Yh Novia 2021)

You can read more about it in Swedish on the soon to be launched website. I’m responsible for the whole visual design of the project, which has been a very fun challenge for me. My past experience fits perfectly in this combination of research, illustration and work with children. I’ve also done the graphic design for other research publications within Novia, but also for Turun Yliopisto/VASSO (I’ll post links to those later when they are published). And more is to come. Many doors have opened, and I’m enjoying being able to go deep into information visualization and design processes.

That is also why I have not updated this blog for so long. I was busy doing the work, rather than promoting it 😀

It feels like I have learned so much the past year, especially my skills in vector art and graphic design have developed a lot. I’m also writing my own design thesis in service design about the project, and therefore not only developing practical skills, but also my design thinking skills.

Meanwhile I was also lucky to be invited into a children’s book project by Jolin Slotte. Jolin worked together with 140 children and created a fun story, that I had the privilege to illustrate. I also did the layout for the book. It recently got a very nice review in Swedish here.

Mikael, jag och Karlssonligan (Marginal förlag 2021)

A year ago I also had my first solo fine art exhibition in Mökki Galleria. I have uploaded most of the paintings on a new page here now. Most are still for sale, and you can simply contact me for details if you are interested in a painting. I’m going to be collaborating with Mökki Galleria also next year.

Mandarines, oil on cardboard, 2020.

This summer I did the graphic design for a photo exhibition here in Turku. The artists Rewan Kakil and Saara Aina have created touching photographs together with project manager Nana Blomqvist. I was very proud to be part of the exhibition by designing flyers and text presentations.

Flyer for the exhibition Love crossing boundaries, summer 2021, Turku

Love Crossing Boundaries, photo exhibition by Rewan Kakil and Saara Aina, 12.06-20.08.2021.

My work with Resursstarka barn continues until the end of 2022. And I also have other projects starting this Autumn. Hopefully I will take the time to write more about them as they progress…

Take care ❤

Autumnal activities (portrait series and exhibition)

Time for an update! Besides being with the cutest baby ever, I’ve started editing my book manuscript and working on an art project when I have the time (which of course is almost never, but I can find a few minutes of time for art every now and then).

The new project is actually not that new, I’ve had it on my mind for a long time, but in the form of a diffuse inspired feeling. I’ve taken a lot of photos of my oldest daughter when she plays with clothes and scarves, and felt like painting or drawing her.

During summer I made this pencil drawing on paper:

Then I got the idea to try acrylics (that I’m not so used to using, source of inspiration: Maija Hurme) and paint a year old Instagram photo that I’m especially fond of:

And now I’m trying Kyle’s brushes (Happy HB) on Photoshop for a very fine pencil line:

I’d also like to paint some very large scale acrylic paintings of these same poses, and really explore them. What feelings do the different techniques and sizes create? This is a playful project of exploration! We’ll see where it goes. I’m hoping to create a body of work around this theme that could be used for an exhibition.

And speaking of exhibitions: right now I have a ten minute film of my digital fantasy illustrations rolling in the public library. I’ll post the film here in October when the library exhibition is over! Here’s the flyer (in Swedish):