In and Beyond Paintings

These are the two paintings we recently made for the 150th anniversary of the municipality of Kittilä. We painted them together. Using local scenes and motives -familiar to us- the paintings hold the possibility to open up to a reading of a more universal character. These two complementary paintings -in season of the year and in gender- might reflect two essential complementary spiritual qualities.

The first painting depicts through fractured, ligneous marks and gestures the final strides of a figure stepping out of concealment into a luminous unknown. The underlying quality of this work might be that of a willingness to go beyond, to discover and see by ourselves, to leave behind obsolete beliefs and stagnant world views. It may affirm the courage of being honest with oneself, both in what we already maintain as certain -and makes us feel safe- and as we glimpse into the vast realm of what we don’t know. 

The figure in the second painting in turn reminds us of the possibility to remain sensitive; at ease within our vulnerability; open-hearted within the ebbs and flows of our lives' journey. The prevalent quality in the second painting might refer to that (rare) uncompromising resolve to be and move in the world from a place of kindness, despite any circumstance, towards oneself and others. The work would be proposing an on-going embrace, with that same unconditional care a mother profess for her young baby, extended across all the width of this moment.

Different spiritual traditions refer to these paired spiritual qualities under different names such as ‘wisdom and compassion’, ‘truth and love’, ‘higher intellectual centre and higher heart centre’, ‘mental and emotional balance’… the list goes on. They may also be broadly understood as the female and male principles or energies present in each of us.

Raisa Raekallio & MIsha del Val 'Willingness to See', oil on linen, 105 x 125 cm, 2018

Raisa Raekallio & MIsha del Val 'Nourishing', oil on linen, 135 x 115 cm, 2018

#raisaandmisha #raisaraekallio #mishadelval #raisaraekallio_mishadelval
raisa raekallio misha del val