Night Studio, 2021
Hermelin marble, Noce travertine, Finnsheep wool
80 x 95 x 60 cm
In Saastamoinen Foundation Art Collection
EMMA JÄÄSKELÄINEN transforms classic stone sculpting materials and techniques into contemporary, contemplative, cheeky, soft and bulky forms, that carry strong personal stories. From monumental scale to palm-size, and from hard materials such as granite, marble and travertine to metal casting and wool felting, Jääskeläinen looks for impulses that arise from within the material, as it slowly reacts to her touch. Her idea for a piece of stone is always a proposal; the stone responds, guides, resists or demonstrates its willingness to collaborate. The juxtaposition of opposites, such as hard and soft, runs through both the materials and forms. Soft wool is transformed through felting into something as hard as stone; the surface of stone is worked with repeated, almost meditative hand movements into a soft and living form. In a light-hearted way her works address fundamental, corporeal experiences such as motherhood, empathy and caring.
Emma Jääskeläinen (b. 1988) lives and works in Espoo. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in 2018, and in 2022 she received the nationally notable Young Artist of the Year award. Her many exhibitions include: GAA gallery, New York (2025); HAM Helsinki Art Museum (2024), Paris+par Art Basel, Paris (2023); Turku Art Museum (2023), Vleeshal, The Netherlands (2023); Tampere Art Museum (2022), PMS Gallery, Berlin (2021); and Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, Helsinki (2019). Jääskeläinen’s work is found in numerous private and key public collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, HAM Helsinki Art Museum and Tampere Art Museum.
At Her Fingertips, 2023
detail
Norwegian Rose Marble , found stones, iron
size variable
Photo: Andrea Rosetti
installation view
EMERGING 2021
Photo: Jussi Tiainen
Repose, 2021
Norwegian Rose marble, travertine, Finnsheep wool
105 cm x 160 cm x 120 cm
Running up that hill, 2021
Finnsheep wool, brass
29 1/2 x 21 5/8 x 11 3/4 in | 75 x 55 x 30 cm
Photo: Marjorie Brunet Plaza
Night Studio, 2021
Hermelin marble, Noce travertine, Finnsheep wool
80 x 95 x 60 cm
Roll, 2021
Finnish sheep wool
20 x 20 x 13 cm
At Her Fingertips, 2023
at Jardin de Tuileries, Paris
Norwegian Rose Marble, found stones, iron
size variable
Photo: Andrea Rosetti
Long, long longing, Unfolding the Night, 2023
sheep wool
120 x 150 cm
Photo: Paavo Lehtonen
At Her Fingertips, 2023
detail
Norwegian Rose Marble , found stones, iron
size variable
Photo: Andrea Rosetti