About
Emilia Pennanen is a visual artist from Helsinki, Finland. Her artistic practice consists of working with photography, sculpture, text and sound.
Artist statement
The starting point of my artistic process is in photography, from which I continue working by printing and developing images through analogue and digital methods on to natural materials, such as, silk, gypsum and wood, which will further develop into sculptures. In my multi-material works, I draw on personal material and literature to explore themes such as landscape photography and nature, the interconnectedness of haptic visuality and memory, and the embodied experience of feminine desire and the body. Experimentation and methods that push the boundaries of photography are at the heart of my process. I am guided by intuition and constant curiosity towards sensory and material properties of a landscape, a memory, a touch. With my work I want to expand the view of the photographic imprint. I am curious to explore what happens in the transformation of a photograph developed into a material that is not fixed and static, but haptic and alive. Through experimentation I seek to trace back experienced moments, places or connections more vividly to their emotional and physical essence and origins.
Upcoming & ongoing
2026 Lappeenranta Museum of Art, Finland (group exhibition)
2026 HAA Gallery, Helsinki, Finland (solo exhibition)
2026 Torres Vedras, Portugal (solo exhibition)
2026 Väinö Tanner Foundation's Mazzano Romano Artist-in-Residency, Italy (artist residency)
Degrees and Qualifications
2022 Master of Arts in Photography, Aalto University School of Art, Design and Architecture, Helsinki, Finland
2014 Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD, USA
Other Education
2012 1st year studies of Bachelor of Arts in Contemporary Photography (Honors), University for the Creative Arts, Rochester, UK
Solo exhibitions
2025 Rose Rock/Prairie Flower / Ruusukivi/Preeriankukka, Huuto Gallery, Helsinki, Finland
2024 Sunspinner (Rosa Rocha) / Auringonkehrääjä (Rosa Rocha), Photographic Gallery Hippolyte Studio, Helsinki, Finland
2023 Sun Drawing on the Skin of a Rock, Photographic Centre Peri, Turku, Finland
2023 Mirage, Poriginal gallery, Pori, Finland
2022 Mirage, Art Centre Mältinranta Studio, Tampere, Finland
2021 Almost there, V1 Gallery in Espoo, Finland
2019 Sun sets over your, Asbestos Art Space, Helsinki, Finland
2015 Tidal Swell, EMP Collective, Baltimore, MD, USA
Selected group exhibitions
2025 Tea Time, Serlachius Residency Open Studios Exhibition, Mänttä, Finland
2025 Coast to Coast, RAMA Open Studios Exhibition, Torres Vedras, Portugal
2023 Mirage, Encontros da Imagem – International Photography & Visual Arts Festival, Braga, Portugal
2023 Finnish Spirit – Identity, Lapinlahden Lähde, Helsinki, Finland
2021 1–100 Art Shop, Mutteri Gallery, Helsinki, Finland
2020 Unfold, Finnish Museum of Photography in Helsinki, Finland
2020 Kinship Photogram, Untitled Festival, Demos Helsinki, Finland
2019 Hatching, Kosminen, Helsinki, Finland
2017 Der Greif: Thread Count, Unseen Festival, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
2017 Expectations: A Feminist Video Screening, Lillstreet Loft, Chicago, IL, USA
2015 Academy 2015, CONNERSMITH., Washington D.C., USA
2015 Commencement Exhibition, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD, USA
2014 Chasing Down The Pour, George Washington University, Washington D.C., USA
2014 Lightweight, EMP Collective, Baltimore, MD, USA
2013 Good Light, Current Gallery, Baltimore, USA
2013 Mind’s Eye, Full Circle Gallery, Baltimore, USA
2013 Presence, Wilgus Gallery, Baltimore, USA
2013 Kun olimme kahden, Kalleria, Helsinki, FI
2013 Close Your Eyes, Sun Pier House, Chatham, UK
Artist Residencies
2025 Serlachius Residency, Mänttä, Finland
2025 RAMA Artist Residency, Torres Vedras, Portugal
2024 RAMA Artist Residency, Torres Vedras, Portugal
2022 SÍM Artist Residency in Korpúlfsstaðir, Reykjavik, Iceland
Selected Live Performances
2015 6 at 6 at Motel 6, Baltimore, USA
2015 Superwomen at GRL PWR, The Crown, Baltimore, USA
2015 Fable at Pulse, EMP Collective, Baltimore, USA
2015 Distance at Labbodies: Borders, Boundaries, and Barricades Festival, Gallery CA, Baltimore, USA
2015 Spit, Blood, Honey, Sugar at Pulse, EMP Collective, Baltimore, USA
2014 Medusa at Labbodies: Transmodern Festival, Baltimore, USA
2014 Rose at Labbodies: The Flower Shop, Baltimore, USA
2014 Sugared at Labbodies: The Museum Realness, Baltimore, USA
2014 Blood Sugar Magic at Opium Wampum, The Crown, Baltimore, USA
2013 Paradise at Good Year, Annex 2E, Baltimore, USA
2010–2011 Invisible Forces: Short Film by Juliacks, Juliacks, Helsinki, FI and New York, USA
Memberships
The Association of Photographic Artists Finland
Finnish Art Society
Kuvasto
Teosto
Contact:
e.a.pennanen @ gmail.com
Full CV upon request.