Heikki Marila

Heikki Marila is a Finnish visual artist known for his large-scale oil paintings and allusions to art history, including biblical motifs, portraiture and still life compositions. His expressive paintings are typically infused with paradoxical drama: they play on contrasts – spirituality, beauty and the sublime are mixed with fiery carnality and a hint of revulsion. His paintings possess a powerfully physical materiality, which is heightened by an ongoing dialogue between figurative and non-figurative elements and by his thickly applied layers of oil paint. In his recent work, Marila captures the intensity of 17th century painting traditions, which he reinterprets through the lens of contemporary social and visual themes.