Emma Ainala, Paintings publication
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Description
Emma Ainala (b. 1989) is one of the most distinctive figurative painters of her generation. Her large-scale, dreamlike oil paintings are firmly rooted in the present moment yet rich with art historical references. The compositions are populated by people, animals and objects, and their various entanglements, arranged into baroque, theatrical tableaux. Recurrent themes include femininity, sexuality, love, power relations, the gaze and objectification. This book is a comprehensive monograph on Ainala’s art, bringing together paintings from more than a decade. Alongside the rich selection of works, author Anu Kaaja, journalist Eleonoora Riihinen, and art writer Petteri Enroth approach Ainala’s world from three different directions, tracing its recurring figures and obsessions, its mythological undercurrents, and its uncanny sensitivity to the present moment.
- Publisher: © Emma Ainala, 2026.
- Editing and design: Johannes Ekholm.
- Texts: Anu Kaaja, Eleonoora Riihinen, Petteri Enroth.
- English translation: Atte Koskinen, Isa Hukka, Mike Garner.
- Photos: Hannu-Pekka Auerneva, Johannes Ekholm, Jussi Tiainen, Laura Happo.
- ISBN 978-952-88-2390-2
- Size 24 x 27 cm, 126 pages.
- Hardcover.
- Printed in Lithuania.
- Languages Finnish and English.
Emma Ainala: Like a Prayer
In her oil paintings, Emma Ainala (b. 1989, Helsinki) opens up a seductive and chaotic world before you. The main characters in her works are often girls and women who linger amid luxuriant nature or in enclosed interiors. Some have transformed into spiders or snakes. One bears the features of a sphinx, while others have taken on the form of a centaur.
Ainala’s richly detailed paintings are filled with references to popular culture, fashion and art history. Through her art, she seeks to defend the multifacetedness of life: alongside limiting roles, there can also be joy and possibility. In her works, women are compared to pet animals and blend into the décor around them, yet they also glow brightly in the darkness.
Emma Ainala, High Maintenance, 2026. Photo: Johannes Ekholm
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