Yrjö Aleksanteri Ollila (20 July 1887,

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

– 14 November 1932, Helsinki) was a Finnish

Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

painter, designer and muralist.

Biography

Ollila's parents emigrated to America after the death of his older brothers, and the decorative painter, , became his guardian.Brief biography
@ Teatterimuseo. From 1903 to 1906, he studied at the drawing school of the "Finnish Art Society" and later went to Paris on a state scholarship. In 1912, he joined "Septem-ryhmä" (The Septem Group), an association of French-influenced Impressionist artists that advocated the use of pure colors. Its other members included

Willy Finch Alfred William (Willy) Finch (1854 –1930) was a Ceramics (art), ceramist and Painting, painter in the Pointillism, pointillist and Neo-Impressionism, Neo-Impressionist style. Born in Brussels to British parents, he spent most of his creati ...

and

Magnus Enckell Knut Magnus Enckell (9 November 1870 in Hamina – 27 November 1925 in Stockholm) was a Finnish symbolist painter. At first, he painted with a subdued palette, but from 1902 onwards, used increasingly bright colors. He was a leading member of the ...

. In 1919, he and the actress

Elli Tompuri Elin Hulda Maria Tompuri, known as Elli (20 January 1880, Vehkalahti – 4 February 1962, Helsinki) was a Finnish actress, director, dancer and author. Biography Her parents, Jooseppi and Anna Maria were farmers. From 1898, she was a student at ...

attempted to establish a theater that would highlight the newer playwrights, but it went bankrupt a year later and he moved his family to France, where he lived for seven years. While there, he created movie posters, wallpaper patterns and designs for toys as well as doing set designs. His wife, Lylli, who was also a painter, made artificial flowers and designed funeral wreaths. In 1927, Ollila and a businessman named Uuno Sinervä founded the "Helsingin taidevärjäämö" (Helsinki Art Dye-Works), a firm devoted to creating designer fabrics. In addition to his designs, he helped develop new technology for the dyeing process, but left the company in 1929 because he was overwhelmed with work from other commitments. In addition to his canvases and set design work, he did murals for several buildings, including the elementary school on Tehtaankatu Street (1914) and the

Eira Eira is a neighborhood in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. History The district dates back to the early 20th century and received its name after Eira Hospital in the neighboring district of Ullanlinna, which in turn took its name from Eira H ...

branch of the

Kansallis-Osake-Pankki Kansallis-Osake-Pankki (KOP) was a Finnish commercial bank operating from 1889 to 1995. It was created by the fennoman movement as a Finnish language alternative to the largely Swedish language bank, Suomen Yhdyspankki (''Swedish: Föreningsbank ...

(1927). He also did an altarpiece depicting the

Crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross, beam or stake and left to hang until eventual death. It was used as a punishment by the Achaemenid Empire, Persians, Ancient Carthag ...

for a church in

Kontiolahti Kontiolahti (; literally meaning "bear bay") is a municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. It is located in the North Karelia regions of Finland, region, about north of Joensuu. The municipality has a population of () and covers an ar ...

(1929); considered a good example of his later Post-Impressionistic style. His last work was a mural for the

Finnish National Theatre The Finnish National Theatre (), established in 1872, is a theatre located in central Helsinki on the northern side of the Helsinki Central Railway Station Square. The Finnish National Theatre is the oldest Finnish speaking professional thea ...

in 1932. His death was attributed to poisoning from the various dyes and pigments he had been exposed to. He is buried in the

Hietaniemi Cemetery The Hietaniemi cemetery (, ) is located mainly in the Lapinlahti quarter and partly in the Etu-Töölö district of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. It is the location for Finnish state funeral services and is owned by the Evangelical Luthe ...

in Helsinki.

Selected paintings

File:Ollila-Dawn.JPG, Break of Dawn File:Ollila Yrjo Hevosen Juotto.JPG, Watering a Horse File:Ollila-Forest.jpg, Forest Scene File:Ollila-Cliff.jpg, A Decoration

References

External links

ArtNet: More works by Ollila
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ollila, Yrjo 1887 births 1932 deaths Artists from Helsinki Impressionist artists 20th-century Finnish painters Finnish muralists Burials at Hietaniemi Cemetery