Finland-born artist Jussi Pöyhönen relocated to Florida nearly 20 years ago with his wife Paula Rubino, who is also a painter, and a native of the state. Finland, its artists, the training he and his wife received there, the peaceful lifestyle, and his annual summer sojourns, still inform his work which, he says, is about the capturing the one-of-a-kind qualities of every moment.
Conch, oil on linen, 11 x 10½ in.
“Every day has a different feeling, sense of light and color,” says Pöyhönen. “[I’m] trying to be honest to what I see and feel…[Mine] is often a very direct way of painting. Meaning that I observe something and put a note of it on a canvas.”
Red Sunset, oil on linen, 10 x 10 in.
To study the transitory nature of a moment in time, Pöyhönen often revisits a location, both in person and on the canvas. “Painting a seascape plein air many times from the same spot can be interesting,” he explains. “You just realize how different each day looks. It can be a fine line between getting bored of the repeating subject matter and giving yourself enough time to try to really get to know the scene you are painting, and maybe being able to take your painting further than before, and learning something new.”
Under the Seagrapes, oil on linen, 16 x 16 in.
Pöyhönen prefers to paint from life, and his paintings demonstrate the impressionistic immediacy distinctive of plein air-inspired works. Whether painting landscapes, portraits or still life, texture is a key aesthetic component that has become increasingly important to the artist in recent years. “I do like to use a lot of paint and like the look of a surface that shows the brushwork,” he says.
His seascape George Painting was created in plein air at his local beach in Stuart, Florida. “Our artist friend George Dawnay and his family come every winter to paint and have some sunshine,” says Pöyhönen. “I like the challenge of painting a person under a direct sunlight.” Conch is an example of a studio still life highlighting the unique contours and blushed hues of a common seashell in his region. When Pöyhönen is striving to capture the fleeting vitality and energy of a scene he will rely on photo reference, as he did to convey the intensity in the nocturne Red Sunset. Under the Seagrapesoriginated from a live session with a model. Later Pöyhönen added a local landscape in the background.
George Painting, oil on paper, 8½ x 11½ in.
These and other new works by Pöyhönen will be on view at Sloane Merrill Gallery in Boston from May 8 through the end of the month. A reception will be held on opening day from 6 to 8 p.m. —
Sloane Merrill Gallery 75 Charles Street • Boston, MA 02114 • (617) 227-1775 • www.sloanemerrillgallery.com
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