Mari Rantanen receives the 4th Elfi von Kantzow Alvin Art Award
Luminous, bold, colorful and poetic, Mari Rantanen’s abstract paintings reflect her interest in architecture, the places people build for themselves, and the life lived in those structures. Her exploration of the history and presence of visual culture, of systems and patterns and the interpretation of cultural experience fill her paintings with emotional resonance. Mari has consistently followed her own path over a more-than-four-decade career, influenced by Scandinavian concretism as well as American abstract geometric painting, she has claimed her own bold color scheme, oranges, pinks, yellows, greens and purples in recurring shapes and patterns.
Mari has consistently followed her own path over a more-than-four-decade career, influenced by Scandinavian concretism as well as American abstract geometric painting, she has claimed her own bold color scheme, oranges, pinks, yellows, greens and purples in recurring shapes and patterns.The relationship between chaos and order, and occasional moments of frustration at society are all present in Mari Rantanen’s multi-faceted art.
Born in Espoo, Finland (1956) Mari lives and works in Stockholm, Sweden and Tammela, Finland. She was educated at both the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki and at the Pratt Institute in New York City which she left in 1996 for a 10 year term as Professor at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm.
Mari has exhibited widely in galleries and institutions in Europe and the US and her work is in many important collections including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Kiasma, Helsinki, Finland. Public commissions include, The Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden; “Oden’s Garden” Citybanan Odenplan station in Stockholm, Sweden; Niittykumpu Metro Station, Espoo Finland; and “Big Splash” at Kungsbacka Simhall, Sweden. recent exhibitions include Trollhättans Art Hall 2025 and at The Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Stockholm in 2026.