Maria Wolfram (born 24 August 1961) is a Finnish visual artist. She is known for creating art that is viewed through the female perspective.
Education and career Wolfram enrolled at art school Vapaa Taidekoulu to study painting. She attended Berkshire College of Art and Design in the UK and obtained a foundation diploma in art. Wolfram earned a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from Kingston University. She obtained her master's from Chelsea College of Art and Design in London.
Wolfram began exhibiting in 1998. Since then, she has participated in many art fairs and festivals around the world. Wolfram has held solo exhibitions outside Finland, namely in Japan, Belgium, Sweden etc. She had worked as an artist-in-residence at the Finnish Institute in Athens, among others.
Wolfram began tutoring art under vocational and technical school, Axxell City, in 2011. She held governing positions in several Finnish art organizations. She is a member of several art associations in Finland, such as the Taidemaalariliitto (Finnish Painters’ Union).
Wolfram is a recipient of many awards and grants in England and in Finland. In 2018, she received a project award from Konstsamfundet rf and Svenska Kulturfonden.
Art Wolfram is a painter and installation artist. She creates art with a contemporary approach, valuing elements such as experimentation and materiality. Wolfram uses mixed materials such as stockings, feathers and various textiles on her sculpture; she would mix oil, acrylic and ink, although she often uses oil in painting.
Wolfram exhibits large-scale oil paintings on wooden panels. She likes to delve in narrative painting – where feminism, identity and power are recurring topics. She takes inspiration from folklore and mythology, and she is interested in the interpretation of history from different cultures. Fueled by the insufficient coverage of women's contributions throughout history, she creates art that is viewed through the female perspective.
Selected works In the Shadow of Corona Sisters are Doing it Reunion Lady Huntington There's Always be a Sister Somewhere The Townhall Meeting All-Kind-of-Ballerinas Miniatyrri 1 Walk with me What if Rembrandt had been Rembrandtina The Scent of Snow
Selected exhibitions Solo Source:
2004 – “Meetings”, Hanasaaren Kulttuurikeskus, Helsinki, Finland 2010 – “Oversea Spotted”, Water Institute Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel 2011 – “There is Room”, Galleria Huuto, Helsinki, Finland 2011 – "Surface and Undercurrents", Kulturcentrum Korpoström, Pargas, Finland 2013 – "Merry Go Around", Galleria Katariina, Helsinki, Finland 2014 – "Among Us", KuKuk V.o.G, Raeven, Belgium 2019 – Art Goes Kapakka Festival, Helsinki, Finland 2019 – "Almost Touching the Stars", Ars Gallery, Tokyo, Japan 2020 – "Pow Wow", Galleria Saskia, Tampere, Finland 2023 – "Face to face", Helsinki, Finland
Group 1998 – Kingston University, London, United Kingdom 1999 – Stanley Picker Gallery, London, United Kingdom 2013 – "OpenArt 2013", Örebro, Sweden 2015 – "NordArt", Budelsdorf, Germany 2016 – "Our Fukishima", National Institution Museum, Kumanovo, Macedonia 2017 – "Silence and Echo", Vestjylland Art Museum, Tistrup, Denmark 2018 – "The Finnish Illusion" (with Katja Tukiainen and Llona Cutts), Spruill Gallery, Atlanta, USA 2019 – "World Art Tokyo" (Representative of Finland), Tokyo, Japan 2019 – "Personal Structures", Venice, Italy
Selected collections Imago Mundi Luciano Benetton Collection The Finnish State's Art Collection, Finland Vattenfalls Konstförening rf., Sweden. German-Finnish Chamber of Commerce, Finland Ameco International Ltd (British Petrol), United Kingdom
References