Jani Leinonen

Jani Leinonen is a contemporary Finnish artist born in 1978.  His work is often a social commentary as he works with themes of class, race, gender, consumerism, food, and more.  Leiononen was traditionally trained as a painter, but his portfolio offers more than the common painting.  He uses found objects, ready-made objects, recycled materials, and other objects as his canvas. 

One of his most famous works involves the painting of cereal boxes.  He collected various cereal boxes from across the world and painted other text or images on them to emphasize a specific message.  I find his use of a cheap, common commodity as a canvas intriguing.  He has expanded the possibilities for mediums in a meaningful manner, because his choice of cereal boxes rather than other packages is deliberate.

Jani Leinonen
2010
Acrylic on product package

 

His work is quite unique in its materials and the risks he takes by painting images of dark humor, racism, and pornography.  However, he strives for art that is accessible to all…he even created an art supermarket in 2006! (Leinonen's art supermarket)

Lastly, here is one of my favorite quotes from Leinonen, "I want to make an artwork that will be stolen from a museum, to make an artwork that will end up pirate production in Shanghai…"