Sini Manninen (26 August 1944,

Joensuu Joensuu (; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Karelia. It is located in the eastern interior of the country and in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Joensuu is approximately , while the sub-region has a population ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

– 23 September 2012,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) was a Finnish painter and artist, trained at the Académie des Beaux Arts de Helsinki in Finland. She produced the majority of her works in France, to which she moved in 1973, more precisely, to the Montmartre district of Paris. Mastering many painting techniques (oil, acrylic, watercolors, ink, and charcoal) under various disciplines,

naïve art Naïve art is usually defined as visual art that is created by a person who lacks the formal education and training that a professional artist undergoes (in anatomy, art history, technique, perspective, ways of seeing). When this aesthetic is ...

remained her fondest style.

Biography

Family and childhood

A youngest daughter of Elis Olavi Carolus Manninen and Elisabeth Budnik, Sini Manninen grew up in Joensuu,

Karelia Karelia (; Karelian language, Karelian and ; , historically Коре́ла, ''Korela'' []; ) is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for Russia (including the Soviet Union, Soviet era), Finland, and Sweden. It is currentl ...

, where her father officiated as a pastor before becoming a member of

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

during the 1960s. Later, the family moved several kilometers to the small town of

Liperi Liperi () is a municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is located in the North Karelia regions of Finland, region. Liperi is a community of () with the growth rate of 83 newcomers in 11 months in 2007. The population density is . T ...

, where nature and its colors, as well as animals, became an inexhaustible source of artistic inspiration. Sini_Manninen_en_1978

In 1965, she moved to

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 ...

to enter the Academy of Fine Arts (Suomen taideakatemia) until 1969. During this time, she trained with other renowned artists such as Saara Tikka, Inari Krohn, Tarja Unkari, Kari Lindström and Risto Vilhunen. Between 1970 and 1973, she went to work in a herring plant in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

to earn a living and participated in the Oslo Young Painter's Association in Norway from 1970 to 1977.

Parisian life

In 1973, she moved to

Montmartre Montmartre ( , , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement of Paris, 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Rive Droite, Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for its a ...

, in Paris, to live with her companion Jacques Blank, also a painter, whom she met in Norway. While living in Paris, she showcased numerous exhibitions, as well as elsewhere in the world. Sini and Jacques’ everyday life took place at the

Place du Tertre The Place du Tertre () is a square in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France. Only a few streets away from the Basilica of the Sacré Cœur and the Lapin Agile cabaret, it is near the summit of the city's elevated Montmartre quarter. Histo ...

in Montmartre where they painted and sold their artwork. In 1980, Sini Manninen received a grant from the Finnish Foundation to attend the

Cité internationale des arts The Cité internationale des arts is an artist-in-residence building complex which accommodates artists of all specialities and nationalities in Paris. It comprises two sites, one located in the Marais and the other in Montmartre. Approximately ...

in Paris. That same year their first child was born, Solene, while their second child, Mikko was born shortly thereafter in 1982. Following the death of Jacques' father, Lucien Blank, in 1988, the family decided to seek a life conducive to the development of their children and their art.

Provincial life

In 1990, the family moved to

Confolens Confolens ( ; Limousin: ''Cofolents'', ) is a commune in southwestern France. It is one of the two sub-prefectures of the Charente department. Confolens is the administrative center of a largely rural district, which has seen the development ...

, a small town in the northeast

Charente Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, and also the r ...

region, where they settled permanently. Nonetheless, in order to make a living, the two artists were forced to keep their small apartment in Montmartre, where they went regularly to continue painting on the Place du Tertre. Sini Manninen actively painted for public and private exhibitions. Additionally, some works have been exhibited at the museum of naïve art in Vicq, in

Ile de France Ile or ILE may refer to: Ile * Ile, a Puerto Rican singer * Ile District (disambiguation), multiple places * Ilé-Ifẹ̀, an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria * Interlingue (ISO 639:ile), a planned language * Isoleucine, an amino aci ...

, as well as at the Art Museum of Matanzas in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Expositions

1973–1977 - Gallery II, Stavanger, Norway - Salon international « Paris Sud » - Salon d'Automne Paris, France - Cannes International, France - XXVe Grand Prix International de Peinture de Deauville, Deauville, France - Salon International des Beaux Arts, Paris, France - Salon des Indépendants, Paris - Art Center, Västeräs, Sweden 1978 - Salon d'automne, Paris, France - Exhibition à la Mairie du IVe arrondissement de Paris, France - Grand Prix International de Peinture de Deauville, Deauville, France - Young Painters Exhibition - Jeune Expression, Paris - Solo Exhibition « Docent Duk » Stockholm, Sweden 1979 - Salon des Indépendants, Paris, France - Salon des Artistes Français, Paris - Exhibition Jeune Peinture - Jeune Expression, Paris - Solo Exhibition à Västeräs et Stockholm, Sweden 1980 - Exposition à la Mairie du XVIIIe arrondissement de Paris, France - Salon des Indépendants, Paris, France - Exposition Jeune Peinture - Jeune Expression, Paris - Solo Exhibition à Västeräs, Sweden 1981 - Exposition à la Mairie du XVIIIe arrondissement de Paris, France - Exposition à l'Atelier 74, Paris - Exposition à la Mairie du XIIIe arrondissement de Paris, France - Exposition à la Cité Internationale des Arts de Paris, France - Solo Exhibition, Helsinki, Finland 1982 - Exposition à la Mairie du XVIIe arrondissement de Paris, France - Salon des Artistes Français, Paris - Solo Exhibition, Ibi, Spain 1985 - Exhibition Gallery Lawrence Ross, Los Angeles, USA 1986 - Exhibition at Musée d'art Naïf Max Fourny, Paris Montmartre 1988 - Exhibition at the Cité internationale des Arts, à Paris - XVIIe « Salon », Rueil-Malmaison, Paris 1989 - XVIIIe « Salon », Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, salle Pleyel, Public Show, Paris 1990 - Salon International d'Art Naïf, Marie du IVe arrondissement, Paris 1991 - Exposition des donateurs, Musée de la ville de Matanzas, Cuba 1992 - International Show of Naive Painter Art, Paris - Private painting Show, Galerie Cheize d'Or, Poitiers 1993 - Exhibition « 3 en 1 », mairie de Confolens, Charente, France - European Naifs, Holdsworth Galleries, Australia - IIIe Exposition Internationale de Pontivy, France 1994 - International Show of Naive Painter Art, Paris - Solo Exhibition, Galerie Cheize d'Or, Poitiers 1995 - Ve Exposition Internationale de Pontivy, France - Solo Exhibition, Galerie Bröms, Helsinki Finland 1996 - Solo Exhibition, Galerie Cheize d'Or, Poitiers 1997 - Solo Exhibition, Alicante, Spain - Study Benaiton, Angoulême, France 1998 - Solo Exhibition, Pyysaari, Helsinki, Finland 1999 - Group Exhibition, CNBDI, Angoulême, France - Solo Exhibition, Alicante, Spain - Solo Exhibition, Confolens, Charente, France 1999–2002 - Exhibition Gallery Broms, Liperi, Finland 2002 - Group Exhibition d'Art Naïf, Saint Junien, France 2003 - Solo Exhibition, Pyysaari, Helsinki, Finland 2005 - Solo Exhibition, Galerie Broms, Helsinki, Finland 2006 - Festival d'Art Naïf, Saint Junien - Group Exhibition of Art Naif de Montivilliers, France - Festival d'Art Naif, Verneuil sur Avre 2011 - Group Exhibition,"La Balade des Naïfs", The Connoisseur's Gallery , Paris VIe arrt 2012 - Group Exhibition, Association Art Montmartre, salle paroissiale de l'église Saint Pierre de Montmartre 2013 - Solo Exhibition, Pyysaari, Helsinki, Finland 2017 - Solo Exhibition, galerie de la Fontorse et Mairie de Confolens

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manninen, Sini 1944 births 2012 deaths 20th-century Finnish painters 21st-century Finnish painters Finnish emigrants to France Finnish emigrants to Norway 20th-century Finnish women painters 21st-century Finnish women painters Naïve painters