Pekka Kauhanen - Ascension Day Bonfire

In the sculpture Ascension Day Bonfire, which combines bronze and aluminium, three graceful maidens dance. Although the work consists of three floating dresses, the viewer can perceive the movement of a body, the position of a dancer’s foot, and perhaps also the maidens’ liberated expressions in the rapture of the dance. Pekka Kauhanen’s (b. 1954 Leppävirta, d. 2020 Espoo) figures belong to a world of fantasy, and she has described herself as a magical realist.

For Kauhanen, playfulness and open-mindedness are important elements in making art. Familiar forms and subjects gain new meanings when they are combined in ways that differ from the usual. The idea for a work may arise during a walk, and even the smallest observed detail can set the imagination in motion. The subject of a sculpture first takes shape in wax, after which the work is ready to be cast. The working process may sound deliberate and systematic, but it too includes surprises. “After the sketch, the work tends to follow little detours, back and forth - sometimes even wandering a bit off into the woods.”

Alongside his extensive career in visual art, Kauhanen served for many years as a member of the art acquisitions committee of the Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation.