COLORED DARKNESS – Salla Laurinolli

Salla Laurinolli (b. 1976) is a painter and Master of Arts from Hämeenlinna, Finland. She graduated as a visual artist from Kankaanpää School of Fine Arts 20 years ago, in June 2002, and earned her Master’s degree from Aalto University in 2019. The exhibition Colored Darkness takes its name from a new series of tempera and oil paintings.

“My painting process is rooted in slow movement—primarily walking through different terrains. In recent years, my works have explored the subterranean world of landscapes. I am particularly fascinated by the history embedded in the soil and the movement that flows through its layers, sustaining life in the present moment. My perspective on landscapes, forests, and the underground processes beneath them is shaped by personal experience, above-ground observations, and imagination.

I am also intrigued by the concept of time in painting—the way the painting process captures a fleeting yet recurring motion, momentarily paused in pigment. This relationship between painting, moving imagery, and lyrical expression is something I continuously explore. Creating video notes in natural environments and experimenting with moving-image works around them has become an essential part of my painting process.

At its core, my work is about embracing the possibilities of painting born from slow and quiet movement through the landscape. Every new beginning holds the potential for a different reality and renewed hope.”

“My spirit strove for the heights,
but love drew it sweetly downward,
suffering bent it with greater force;
thus I walked through life’s arch,
and I return to where I began.”

— The Course of Life, Friedrich Hölderlin (1770–1843),
translated into Finnish by Johan L. Pii

The exhibition is supported by the Häme Cultural Foundation.

Translated with ChatGPT