Leena Lönnroth

Leena Lönnroth is a Finnish visual artist specializing in still-life compositions.

“Of all the genres of visual art, still life is the one most at home in the domestic realm. Unlike a landscape, it remains small and close, even at its largest. Human hands have arranged it and angled the lamplight so that the flower’s petals cast their most beautiful shadow—one that does not move with the sun.

A still-life model sits patiently and silently for days. The gaze returns to it time and again until it discovers what truly matters. If a flower grows tired and bows its head, the artist can restore it to its former position. There is no hurry within the picture, no need to leave just yet, no thought of longing to be elsewhere. In my mind, peace and beauty belong together. They are simple and within reach. The desire to let one’s gaze linger means that something, here and now, is as it should be.”