Lanu 100

This year marks the centenary of artist Olavi Lanu’s birth and it is being celebrated in various ways. Lanu was a Finnish artist known particularly for sculptures using natural materials. Lanu also worked as a teacher and was an influential figure in the Lahti art scene. His multifaceted career comprises many art forms, and his works can be found in the Malva and Finnish National Gallery collections, among others.  

Olavi Lanu 1925-2015

Lennart Olavi ”Olli” Lanu was born in the village of Karppila, in the rural municipality of Vyborg on the 10th of July in 1925. He learned the concrete casting technique that would later become a recognisable part of his practice during wartime, when he was working as a concrete laboratory technician on the Karelian Isthmus. Lanu began his artistic education 1946 aged 21 in the Free Art School and continued his studies at the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts from 1947 to 1951. He also studied painting and drawing in Paris from 1952 to 1953 at Académie André Lhote and Académie de la Grande Chaumière. He moved to Lahti in 1956.

Lanu’s artistic breakthrough came with the Venice Biennale in 1978, where he exhibited sculptures made using natural materials. Continuing with the themes of these works, Lanu Sculpture Park was realised on Kariniemenmäki in Lahti from 1989 to 1992. Twelve sculptures blending into the deciduous forest were commissioned for it. Lanu was also a teacher, a politician and an influential figure in the Lahti art scene. Olavi Lanu was granted the honorary title of taiteilijaprofessori [Artist Professor] in 1986, the Lahti medal in 1987 and the Pro Finlandia medal in 1998. Olavi Lanu passed away on the 11th of May in 2015.  

Olavi Lanu’s works in the malva art collection  

Olavi Lanu has been most known for his environmental sculptures resembling human figures – such as the ones we encounter in the Transformations exhibition. Nevertheless, during his career he also made other types of works; figurative self-portraits, paintings, prints, photographs, abstract drawings, bas-reliefs, watercolors and artworks where instead of using oil paints, he made use of natural materials such a sand. He referred to these pieces as “pictures” instead of paintings. The scale of the pieces ranges from just a few centimeters to several meters. The Malva collection holds 238 works by Lanu, covering the length of his prolific and multistage career. The works have been either donated by private collectors or been purchased or commissioned directly from the artist.  

Public artworks by Olavi Lanu 

It is possible to get acquainted with Olavi Lanu’s public sculptures all around Lahti. Individual works include the delicate Pajutyttö [Willow Girl] in front of Galleria Nuovo and the mysterious Kivettymä [Petrification] in front of Lahti City Theater. Lehmus [Linden], on Lanunaukio, provokes reflection with its tree-like character. Larger bodies of work can be found for example in Lanu Sculpture Park in Kariniemi, where total of twelve sculptures by Lanu blend into the surrounding nature. On Radiomäki, one can spot four sculptures forming a whole.  

Get to know Lanu Park: 

Transformations

The exhibition Transformations lifts the late Olavi Lanu, the centenary of whose birth is celebrated this year, into the spotlight. The exhibition brings Lanu’s works into dialogue with his own contemporaries and with artists working today. 

The exhibition deals with corporeality, emotional life and multi-sensory experiences, and explores the interaction between humans and nature. Human existence is seen as a part of nature’s cycles. 

The exhibition is open on the first floor of Malva May 5 – November 2, 2025. 

The artists in the exhibition 

Arca & Jesse Kanda, Kinga Bartis, melanie bonajo, Elo-Reet Järv, Olavi Lanu, Ana Mendieta, Taneli Rautiainen, Luis Alberto Rodriguez, Jani Ruscica, Mari Sunna and Apichatpong Weerasethakul  

Exhibition events  

On the occasion of Transformations exhibition and Lanu centenary we will be putting on various exhibition events and public programming during 2025. The website and the programme will be updated in the course of the spring, so stay tuned.  

Excerpts from Lanu memories  

Last year we collected memories Lahti residents had of Olavi Lanu with the help of an online form. Lanu was a prominent figure in Lahti, not only as a sculptor, but also as a teacher and an activist promoting the cause of opening an art museum here.  

Here are some excerpts from memories of the artist:

Olli was spontaneous, brave and an inspiring teacher – an absolute authority. He spoke and laughed loudly. He taught a broad range of different drawing and painting techniques, composition, abstraction, molding, color theory and perspective as well as art history from a book with black and white images.  

Olli always arrived at school on his bike. Wearing a black beret. Askew.

We loved Olli’s way of teaching, which was anything but conservative. He opened our eyes to see and hear things beyond what was presumed!

His teaching methods included regular visits to the Lahti Museum of Visual Art. This too has had a large influence on me, and it has shaped my ability to look at and evaluate artworks as a spectator. I still enjoy going to art exhibitions.