Jouko Lempinen: Creatures – a small retrospective 17.7.- 13.9.2026

At heart, I am a colorist, but in recent years I have been carving figures out of wood. My interest in wood began by chance when I acquired some log booms as a by-product of a project. They became the public artwork the Choir of Kaukaa, followed by other sculptures. In addition to those booms, I now use other found wood that bears a patina

The coincidence that brought the wood to me was fortunate, as painting was becoming difficult at the same time. The onset of a memory disorder made it hard to perceive colors and composition. Painting became unpleasant. The illness has made painting nearly impossible, yet I still find figures in the wood.

Figures have been present in my art from the very beginning. I have carried these primitive figures with me—initially in paintings using masking tape, then with a freer approach, and now in wood. Already years ago, I created painted wood reliefs that combined figures with a focus on color.

The figures have often been, to a greater or lesser extent, self-portraits. Even when I have painted in a more realistic style at times, the figures have still always been present. I decided to include paintings from different periods in the exhibition to highlight the continuity in my art.

The characters are linked to their emotional states. While these are usually my own emotions, the emotional states of others have also often prompted me to perceive them and realize my own interpretation of them. At the same time, these are works in which I have sought to identify with the content of the depicted event and evoke that other person's emotional state.

The wood determines what it will become, so my workbench has yielded both large-scale pieces and smaller sculptures. Sometimes they turn into reliefs, while at other times they require a board to stand on. A colleague once compared my studio to the shed workshop of Emil of Lönneberga.

Jouko Lempinen, who worked as a sales engineer, decided while working in Pudasjärvi to apply to the Academy of Fine Arts, where he specialized in painting. In recent years, his production has consisted of wood sculptures. Since the 1990s, he has also created environmental art, videos, and murals. Lempinen has held some 40 solo exhibitions and featured in dozens of curated group exhibitions.

Lempinen has worked in versatile ways to promote visual arts. Among other things, he co-founded the South Karelia Artists’ Association and the association Kantri ja Urbaani ry, and has served as the chairperson of the regional arts council and as a member of the National Council for Visual Arts. He has chaired the South Karelia Artists’ Association on three occasions and played a key role in establishing initiatives such as the Art Centre Itä, Kaakon taide, and the South Karelia Art Lending Service. He also conceived and organized the 5000m2 exhibition event (2016), which showcased the work of over 130 artists.

Artist
Jouko Lempinen
jouko.y.lempinen@gmail.com

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