Oil on a pre-cut panel covered with cotton
39 cm x 32 cm x 3 cm
2026
Price incl. taxes
The artwork is not on display in the gallery
Recently, my works have centred on imaginative plants that sprawl along the shapes of bases assembled from fragments. The plants flower and bear fruit. The stems, leaves and pots feature geometric patterns: salmiak-like patterns, lines, circles and dots are arranged around the form. The presentation is reminiscent of a botanical illustration. The plant appears as if it has been pressed flat onto a surface. The two-dimensional effect is emphasised.
For me, the form of a painting is an important part of the creation and planning process. In my works, I make use of fragments, holes, crevices and the challenging forms of the traditional, rectangular canvas. For me, the canvas is a three-dimensional object, a sculpture.
Kaisa Kaanela graduated from Maa Art School in 2004 as a contemporary artist and from the Muurla Photography Institute as a photographer that same year. She went on to deepen her practice through open university studies at the Academy of Fine Arts and the University of Art and Design Helsinki.
Kaanela’s work grows out of a desire to tell viewers stories through form and imagery. The shape of a painting is central to the work from the outset. She challenges the convention of painting on a rectangular support, composing her works from surfaces, colors, lines, and rhythmic patterns.
Kaanela uses fragments, holes, gaps, and shapes to break up the conventional rectangle. For her, the painting support is a three-dimensional object, a sculpture in its own right.
She sometimes works the supports quite roughly. She builds up layers of color, then sands, scrapes, and dissolves parts of them away. In her recent paintings, she uses stencils to create crisp, graphic patterns.
Each painting support is made by hand from start to finish. The process includes pressing the base panel, cutting it to shape, gluing on the canvas, and priming it.
Kaanela’s studio is in Hakaniemi, Helsinki. The sounds around the studio are an important part of her practice. When she paints, the window onto the street is often open. The rhythms, inflections of voices, hum of conversation, and sounds of traffic find their way into the work.
Moving between different spaces is an important part of Kaanela’s process. She observes the city and watches how nature changes with the seasons.
Flower of Imagination
Kaisa Kaanela
980 €
Nest
Kaisa Kaanela
980 €
Blue banana
Kaisa Kaanela
980 €
Carriage
Kaisa Kaanela
980 €
