User:Nelimarkka/Riitta Nelimarkka (1)

Riitta Leena Nelimarkka (full surname: Nelimarkka-Seeck; b. 6 July 1948 in Helsinki) is a Finnish visual artist, author and animation-film director. She was granted the title of professor in 2008.

Riitta Nelimarkka is the granddaughter of Professor Eero Nelimarkka and the daughter of the founder of Neles Oy Antti Nelimarkka, MSc. The detective novel writer Max Seeck is Riitta Nelimarkka’s youngest son. She is married to Jaakko Seeck and they have three sons and four grandchildren.

Nelimarkka’s production includes extended series of artworks and exhibitions, graphic works, animations, videos, paintings, art and poetry books, photographs and art textiles. Starting in 1973 she has held dozens of museum, gallery and solo exhibitions in Finland and abroad. She has held several trustee positions in the art and culture sector, including on the production committee of the Finnish Film Foundation, the board of the Finnish branch of Europa Nostra and Finnish state filmic art and design committees, and also been chair of the Nelimarkka Foundation since 1987.

Studies
Riitta Nelimarkka attended the Free Art School and the Ateneum’s night school in 1967–1968, studied education and musicology at the University of Helsinki, and graduated as an art teacher from the Institute of Applied Arts in Helsinki in 1972. She also studied animation, photography and art education at the Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm in 1970-1971, painting in Paris in 1970, and film at the Institute of Applied Arts in Helsinki in 1973. In addition, Nelimarkka studied piano and music theory in the youth department of the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki in 1958-1967. She gained her Doctorate in Fine Arts in 2001.

Doctoral Thesis
Riitta Nelimarkka’s doctoral work Self portrait, Elisen väitöskirja, Variaation variaatio – Self Portrait, Elise´s Dissertation, variation of a variation, in 2000 dealt with the problematics of creativity in relation to 19th-century philosophers such as Arthur Schopenhauer and Sören Kierkegaard and in relation to her own works. Permission to publish the dissertation was granted, and the opponents defended that approval. Nevertheless, the University of Applied Arts degree council rejected the work in November 2000. With the support of some distinguished professors, Nelimarkka demanded a rectification and the degree board overturned the decision made by the council. The thesis was accepted in February 2001.

Nelimarkka wrote the humorous pamphlet Väitösfarssi (dissertation farce, 2005) about the event.

Exhibitions
A permanent exhibition of Nelimarkka’s works has been on display at Bonga Castle, owned by Nelimarkka & Seeck’s family in Loviisa, since 1998. In addition to numerous solo exhibitions she has taken part in joint exhibitions in Finland and abroad since 1973. She has had extensive solo exhibitions in museums, for instance, the Amos Anderson Art Museum (Helsinki), Kunsthalle Helsinki, the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) (Los Angeles), Hannover Expo 2000, Tsereteli Art Gallery (Moscow) 2005, Museo Nacional in Lima 2006, the EU Parliament building (Brussels) 2006, Hallwyl Museum (Stockholm) 2007, Maison de l'Amérique Latine de Monaco 2008, Zürich 2009–2011, La Maison de l'Europe (Paris) 2011, Helsinki Music Center 2013, Nelimarkka Museum (Finland) 2014, Joensuu Art Museum Onni 2015, Auran Galleria (Turku) 2017. Nelimarkka’s works are in private and public collections, international companies, several Finnish embassies, and the President of the Republic of Finland’s official residence in Mäntyniemi.

Prizes and Honours
Riitta Nelimarkka was made an officier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2016. The Aleksis Kivi Society made Riitta Nelimarkka an honorary member in spring 2016. Nelimarkka was invited to be a member of the European Museum Academy in 2014. In 2014 Suomen Animaatioklinikka – Finnish animation makers, granted Riitta Nelimarkka the honorary title of “Animaation sankari” (hero of animation) for her exemplary work on animation films. Nelimarkka was granted the title of professor in 2008. She was Vuoden munkkalainen (Munkkiniemi High School Alumna of the Year) in 2003. She has received numerous prizes at international festivals, including in Bologna in 1990 and 1992, and in Brno in 1992, and Hyvän Tiedon Omenan (good information apple) in 1992–2008, Best Feature Film at the ReAnimania International Animation Film Festival in Yerevan in 2011, Special Jury Prize at the Giffoni International Film Festival (for children) in Giffoni, Italy, in 1980, and the Risto Jarva Prize in1985. Nelimarkka has also been awarded Kirjavaliot 1983, Jussi diploma 1979, the Kalevala Society’s youth award 1975, the Finnish Critics’ Association’s Critics’ Spurs 1974, State Prize for Cinema 1972, Elokuvan laatupalkinto (quality award for film) 1972, 1973 and 1979, and several art grant, including from the Finnish Cultural Foundation.

Series of works (starting in 2005)
The photomontage series Les Faunes – Faunit 2017, Se villan parturit – The Barbers of Seville, wool&wood busts 2017, Hugo Simberg pastiches, silkscreen prints and woollen reliefs, plus photomontages and glass works 2017, Petits Preludes, small, unique glass works 2016, Preludes, 30 min. visualization for Debussy’s preludes, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra concert 6.4.2016 conducted by Hannu Lintu 2016, Without thinking too much, 13 m glasal (glass work), Hietaniemi pavilion façade 2016, Omnipotentia, large-format triptych, Aalto EE 2015, Preludes 2014–2015, photomontages, First Class Passengers, wool reliefs 2014, La Valse, photomontages 2013–2014, Easy Living, wool reliefs and silkscreen prints 2010–2014, Alchemy Girls, black-and-white paintings, acrylic and oil on canvas 2010–2014, Magic Girls, charcoal drawings 2011, Librix, small aspen sculptures, Elise – Grand piano – Rabbit, 2011, Donna est Mobile, steel&plexi mobiles 2010–2011, Foundlings in wood, coloured aspen sculptures 2010, Flyygelipäät II Grand piano heads, collages 2008, Salainen planeetta – Secret planet, photographs 2008, Unique Kiss, wool works, drawings and paintings 2007–2008, Secret Colours, mixed media 2007, Golf is Cool!, charcoal&chalk drawings and wool works, 2007, Elise Loves Life, wool reliefs, 2007, Angels and Lemons, wool reliefs 2007, Dangels and Evils, wool reliefs and drawings 2006, Dogs and Foxes, silkscreen prints 2005, Flyygelipäät II, silkscreen prints and drawings 2005, 102, Soul Crape watercolours 2005, Creatures and Things, wool reliefs 2005–2006.

Books

 * Elise's World, anachronistic art book, Tammi, 2014.
 * Eero Nelimarkka, Tammi, new edition, 2013.
 * Iso ja Pieni Universumissa, Tammi, 2010.
 * Seitsemän Veljestä, 2009.
 * Elisen epämuistelmat, Tammi, 2008.
 * The Marginal – Värityskirja, ei heikkohermoisille, Art Print & Seneca, 2005.
 * Väitösfarssi, Seneca 2003.
 * Self portrait Elisen väitöskirja, Variaation variaatio, Seneca, 2000.
 * Giovanna, Seneca & Tammi, 1996.
 * Apollon, Seneca & Tammi, 1996.
 * Oceania, Seneca & WSOY, 1993.
 * Babylonia, Seneca & Tammi, 1991.
 * Karmelian ABC, Seneca & Tammi, 1990.
 * Tabula Rasa, WSOY, 1987.
 * Eero Nelimarkka (with Jaakko Seeck and Pekka Suhonen), Weilin & Göös, 1984.
 * Galleria (with Leena Krohn), WSOY, 1983.
 * Iso ja Pieni universumissa, Weilin & Göös, 1983.
 * Seitsemän veljestä, Weilin & Göös, 1980 (5. p. 1999 Tammi).
 * Piispa Henrik and Lalli, Gummerus, 1975.
 * Sammon ryöstö, Gummerus, 1974.
 * Avaruus (Appelqvist-Jännes-Nelimarkka), Gummerus, 1972.

CD

 * Self portrait Elise´s dissertation: A Variation of a variation. CD-ROM, Seneca, 2001.

Films
In 1971–1973 Nelimarkka, together with Jaakko Seeck, made a six-part animation based on the Kalevala, titled Sammon tarina (the story of the sampo), in 1974 a short animation Piispa Henrik ja Lalli (Bishop Henrik and Lalli), in 1975 an animation on education for internationalism Kirjava maa (rainbow land), and in 1979 a half-hour pioneering work based on Aleksis Kivi’s work, the collage-animation film Seitsemän veljestä (Seven Brothers), which was the first Finnish full-length animation film. Nelimarkka wrote the script, directed, and painted and drew the characters and backgrounds, Seeck realized the animation. The film has received numerous awards, and was made as a French-Finnish collaboration, in 2011 updated, restored version.
 * EERO NELIMARKKA – per aspera ad astra, art documentary 18 min 2017
 * 7 Freres / 7 brothers / 7 Bröder, full-length animation, new version, 2011–2013 (French/English/Swedish). (Co-production Les Filmes du Paradoxe & Seneca).
 * Bonga Castle, documentary, 2011.
 * Rabula new version, animation, 2011.
 * Seitsemän veljestä, DVD, 2008.
 * Birth of Rabula, 1995.
 * Bagatelles, op. 1–13, 1985–1986.
 * Seitsemän veljestä, 1979.
 * Kirjava maa, 1975.
 * Piispa Henrik ja Lalli, 1974.
 * Sammon tarina 1–3, 1972–1974.