Elina Försti’s paintings tell the story of the passing of time, disintegration, disappearance and change

Elina Försti (b. 1971, Evijärvi) is a painter living and working in Alajärvi. Försti graduated from the Free art school in Helsinki in 2000. She has participated in exhibitions both in Finland and abroad since 1998. Försti’s works can be found in the following art collections, among others: the State Art Deposit Collection, the Paulo Foundation art collection, the Nelimarkka museum and the art collections of the cities of Alajärvi, Kannus and Vaasa and the HUS joint municipal authority. 

In her work, Försti explores light, colour and space using as her point of departure Southern Ostrobothnian barns and other buildings in the landscape, that she finds interesting. Försti is especially interested in the possibilities that using oil paints opens. As an artist, Försti is bound in place and the themes and focal point for her art is linked with the surroundings in which she lives. Elina Försti’s paintings tell the story of the passing of time, disintegration, disappearance and change that we can witness in our daily lives. 

Vistiaho barn from Kiiskinen - the making of the work

Vistiaho barn from Kiiskinen is an oil painting on linen. The linen was primed using rabbit-skin glue and an oil-based primer in accordance with an age-old recipe. 

I have been to a hospital a few times myself. I wanted to create a work that could bring delight, joy of life and harmony to the hospital environment. I had thought about painting the Vistiaho barn for some time, as I pass it by several times every month while walking or cycling along the fields in Kiiskinen. The barn is no longer used for storing hay, but its roof has been well maintained and it stands upright on the road along the field. As a painter, I found the door of the barn interesting as it was partially covered with a door, but some boards were missing, which allowed light to come through, creating interesting patterns. 

It was obvious to me from the very start, that for the hospital I would make a painting of an intact and upright barn. I wanted the painting to capture early spring when some fields have already been ploughed, but some old stubble still remains. Spring is a significant time of the year for me as, in my opinion, that is when light is at its purest and nature at its most beautiful as it slowly wakes up. As a painter, the increasing amount of light and the start of a new growth period is also the best time of the year for me to work. It was a pleasure to make this work in the springtime, which is the most creative time of the year for me as an artist.  

I prepared an initial line draft and colour plan for the painting already in the autumn. I did the actual painting during April–June. During that time, I painted almost every day.  

The painting came to life layer by layer, working from the bottom towards the surface. For the bottom layer, I used complementary colours, such as orange, blue and red and green, lilac and yellow. A complementary colour as the bottom-most colour tempers or breaks the colour and allows me as the painter to adjust the intensity of the colour. I like to use bright, pure colours and remove excessive harshness by either mixing in a little bit of the complementary colour or using it on the background. From technical perspective the process of making the painting went according to plan. The only alterations I had to do were to the structure of the clouds and the colour of the roof, which I adjusted by experimenting.  

I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity of creating a work for the Vaasa Central Hospital. Such opportunities are quite rare. The fact that a work was commissioned specifically from me also empowers myself and tells me that my art is meaningful. 

Makinf of the painting "Vistiaho barn from Kiiskinen".

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