Leif Strengell
Basic information
b. 1955, Vaasa
Artist / Printmaker / Art teacher
Residence: Nykarleby
Contact information
Phone number: +358 50 5170546
Email: leif.strengell@multi.fi
Artist’s Statement
My main expression is printmaking and then specifically photogravure. My technique is at this moment (2022) the so-called photopolymer engraving. It is difficult to define exactly where my place is between photography, art and printmaking. I myself want to say that what I do is printmaking. In that I see photography only as a tool and a starting point, where, on the other hand, at the moment of printing, I experience the transformation from documentary photography to printed matter as an artistic act. This is where art, mystery and time shifts for me arise.
For many years I have worked with developing and researchings around ImagOn / Riston photopolymer engraving technique. It has been said and claimed in printmaking circles that this technique is hopeless, insecure and moody. That statement has challenged me and has thus placed the bar at a challenging height. My goal has been to prove the opposite. It cannot be that something is so uncertain that good results cannot be repeated! This is just about up following, routine and accuracy.
For many years I have worked with developing and researchings around ImagOn / Riston photopolymer engraving technique. It has been said and claimed in printmaking circles that this technique is hopeless, insecure and moody. That statement has challenged me and has thus placed the bar at a challenging height. My goal has been to prove the opposite. It cannot be that something is so uncertain that good results cannot be repeated! This is just about up following, routine and accuracy.
Current information
Participation in the 2022 Graphica Creativa in Jyväskylä.
Untold Artists’ Stories
22 October 2022 – 29 January 2023
Jyväskylä Art Museum, Jyväskylä Finland
