Artist of the Year

Finland is internationally recognized for its contributions to the arts and design fields, and that extends to Finnish and Finnish-American designers, painters, illustrators, photographers, weavers, woodworkers, sculptors, ceramic and other tactile artists in the U.S.

Väinö Kola

Finlandia Foundation National is pleased to introduce Väinö Kola as its Artist of the Year, a program that spotlights outstanding talent within the Finnish-American visual arts community.

Väinö Kola, a Finnish-born painter, now resides on the remote island of Deer Isle, Maine. After earning his B.F.A. from Massachusetts College of Art and M.F.A. from Yale University, Kola spent 26 years teaching art at Wheaton College before dedicating himself to painting full-time. His works, often inspired by natural landscapes and characterized by textured, almost pointillist brushwork, are featured in over forty museum and corporate collections across the U.S. and Europe.

Learn more about Väinö on his website.