Petri Ala-Maunus: Weltlandschaft
Mar 27 – May 3, 2026
Yrjönkatu 22, 00120 Helsinki
Petri Ala-Maunus’s landscapes revel in extremes and collisions. Within a single painting, a violently raging storm may coexist with balmy vistas bathed in soft sunlight – shifting abruptly from apocalyptic ruin to utopian serenity.
His works overflow with hyperbolic beauty and an overwhelming wealth of detail, through which the artist consciously unsettles the traditions of landscape painting.
The exhibition title, Weltlandschaft (World Landscape), refers to a term used in the early sixteenth-century Netherlands to describe a type of Western painting that presents an imagined panoramic landscape from an elevated vantage point.
For nearly three decades, Ala-Maunus has devoted himself to landscape painting. His sustained effort to disrupt tradition has only deepened his engagement with the genre.
His compositions reveal affinities with nineteenth-century North American and German landscape painting. At the same time, he draws freely from popular culture, notably the visual language of metal music album covers.
Petri Ala-Maunus’ work has been presented in numerous solo and group exhibitions. His works are held in major public and private collections.
In 2010, he received the William Thuring Prize from the Finnish Art Society, and in 2019 he was nominated for the Ars Fennica Prize.
Galerie Forsblom
27.3.-3.5.2026
Tue–Fri 11.00-18.00
Sat–Sun 12.00-16.00
Free entry
