About

I’m Harri Tarkka, an artist and illustrator based in Helsinki, Finland.

My paintings are populated by unusual animals with habits, responsibilities and occasional problems of their own. Hare officials rush to inspect the kingdom’s accounts. An owl offers transportation but chooses the destination. Frog princes wait for something that never quite arrives.

I like to imagine creatures that look unlikely but behave convincingly. Their stories often reveal something familiar about us.

Where the stories begin

As a child, I spent summers at my uncle’s farm and our family’s summer cottage, watching insects, animals and whatever was happening under the leaves. Drawing was another way of exploring. A line on paper could become a landscape, and a small character could start living in it.

Nature still gives me much of my material. Literature, everyday behaviour and the strange workings of human communities supply the rest. Some paintings develop a detailed story; others leave more for the viewer to discover.

From illustration to painting

I graduated with a master’s degree in architecture in 1997 and have worked as an illustrator for nearly three decades. My work has ranged from children’s books and magazines to business illustrations, comics and the Space Freaks board game. I have also designed exhibitions for museums.

That background shapes how I paint. I enjoy building a world, finding its characters and working out what might be happening just beyond the frame.

How I work

I begin with drawings, on paper or an iPad, and develop the composition and colours from there.

Some works are painted directly by hand. For my mixed-media paintings, I develop a digital image, print it onto canvas and continue painting with acrylics or oils. This adds texture, layers and details that become part of the finished original.

Drawing, digital work and painting are all parts of my process. I enjoy moving between them and seeing what each stage brings to the image.

Living with a painting

I hope my paintings offer something to return to: a character you become fond of, a story you question or a detail you notice later.

You can explore available originals and canvas prints here. If you would like to ask about a work or discuss a commission, write to me at harri@harritarkka.com.

— Harri