Tanja Ahola uses art to explore the meaning of motion for human beings. She seeks inspiration from the drifting states of mind and the quality of presence in the fleeting moment. Movement and dance play an important role in her paintings.
"I try to understand the role of the human being under the pressures of media, technology, science, politics and entertainment. Our increasing rationality about ourselves emphasizes the need for the irrational and unexplainable. I feel that being with the mystery in us is of central importance in this age, so that as humans we can find our place."
Tanja is a photographer and a painter. She graduated as a Master of Arts from the Helsinki University of Art and Design in 1998. She lives and works in Helsinki.
She has observed people through the lens of a camera for twenty years. Since her years at the university she has worked as a photographer and graphic designer with the most renowned names in the theatre, dance and music scenes in Finland. She has applied her diverse creativity to the production of artists’ visions, documenting the performing arts and portraying unique individuals in photographs. She is also an innovative producer of unique poster and marketing artworks.
As an artist Tanja is fearless and experienced in many different fields. She expanded her expression and technique to painting in 2011. Her strength as a painter is her background as a photographer as her intimate relationship to light, depth and movement provide the essential ingredients of her painting. Tanja has a unique ability to capture the feeling of a moment. Her canvas has the quality of a stage that gently supports the fragile unfolding of the painting.
Tanja feels she is in contact with her calling through the arts. She is a bridge builder between the past and the future.