Painter TAPANI PIIRTO

HELSINKI

Tapani Piirto was born in Jalasjärvi, Southern East Bothnia, Finland in 1946. He lives and works in Helsinki. In the beginning of the 90's Tapani Piirto retired from business to work as a full-time artist. He studied painting under Professor V.A.Lednev, amongst others.

"I am fascinated by beauty, the beauty of life, where a human being, especially a woman or a child, plays the main role. It is this beauty that I want to commit to canvas. The final result is composed of an interaction between the painting atmosphere, the model and the colours. Hurry is one thing that I want to exclude from my paintings, although I like painting movement, such as dance. In the midst of world conflict, I want to turn peoples' attention to the beauty around us and give the viewer a feeling of satisfaction." Tapani Piirto.

His sensitive, ethereal paintings are tableaus of moments we all dream about. When time stands still, it is summer and the sun is shining. Children in a summer meadow or young women with hair blowing freely in the wind have usually turned their backs to the viewers and hidden their faces, creating a natural atmosphere.

Models often merge into their background, thus allowing the viewer to finish the picture in his or her mind. Tapani Piirto favours a bright pastel coloured world where nothing disrupts the harmony of his paintings.

The artist has conducted study trips to Hungary, Spain, Poland and France, amongst others. The cultural history of these countries has been a treasure trove for the painter. Here the refinement of the past and its appreciation has remained up to the present.