Hillevi Vähälä-Aranko: Elämän kevät [Spring of life]

Poriginal gallery of the Pori Art Museum features a new exhibition showcasing the latest paintings by Hillevi Vähälä-Aranko. All the works in the exhibition have been created in the last two years. 

“My exhibition consists of oil paintings where humans and nature meet, engaging in dialogue and transformations. I have been thinking about things that happen to people and animals, wondering our shared space. My own experiences and observations transfer to the canvas, reflecting what happens to us. The paintings are built around natural forms and objects, where shapes, colors, and contents meet. The paintings are staged events, approaching the subject through light and darkness. Nature, people, and animals appear in different forms, each with something to say. In portraits, there is both hiding and being on display. The role of space becomes important in the painting, determining how confined we are. Animals bring something of themselves to the picture while also carrying human elements. I play with transformations, where humans acquire various traits. The color green runs through my images, taking on different shades and meanings; it is captivating and intrusive, sprouting a story.” 

Hillevi Vähälä-Aranko (b. 1961 in Tuusula) lives and works in Helsinki. She graduated as a painter from the Academy of Fine Arts in 1988. Vähälä-Aranko has held solo exhibitions since 1989 and participated in numerous joint and group exhibitions. Her most recent solo exhibitions were at Galleria Promenadia in Hyvinkää in 2024, Pirkko-Liisa Topelius Gallery in Helsinki in 2020, and Galleria Uusi Kipinä in Lahti in 2017. Vähälä-Aranko’s works are included in the collections of the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, and Espoo, as well as the Oulu Art Museum. 

For Vähälä-Aranko, painting is a way to process things that occupy her mind. The subjects are a dialogue between the real and the imaginary world, and the expression varies between a simplified visual language and figurative art. Colors play a strong role in the paintings, and their diverse interactions continuously interest the artist. Transformation and continuity are themes that have recurred in her works over the past few years. The “Elämäni kevät” / “Spring of Life” exhibition continues the same theme that Vähälä-Aranko explored in her previous solo exhibition “Elävä kokoelma” / “Living Collection” in Hyvinkää in 2024. 

Image credit: Hillevi Vähälä-Aranko, Ulos kuoresta, 2025. Cropped image.