Examining her personal observations of humanity, Maija Ojanen investigates one’s place and ways of being in the world. Our perception often involves both aspects of belonging and displacement. Being drawn to magical realism has fuelled Ojanen’s thirst for folk tales, horror and ghost stories, and Eastern philosophy, whose elements emerge in her works. In her drawings she examines human life through plants, animals and other natural motifs. In Ojanen’s current black-and-white drawings female figures appear with chopped-off heads as symbols of self-sacrifice and transformation. The series is about the mental experiences of fear, death and encountering oneself.

Maija Ojanen (b. 1981) was born and raised in Jyväskylä. After studying at the Kankaanpää Art School and in Helsinki, she returned to her hometown, where she lives and works today. The landscapes in Central Finland are close to her heart, and elements of the nature in the region appear in her art. Ojanen’s mediums include watercolour, gouache and ink.