KatiLeinonen

About

Kati Leinonen (b. 1974) is an artist and photographer based in Oulu in Northern Finland. She studied photography at the London College of Printing (BA) and audiovisual media culture at the University of Lapland (MA). Leinonen often works with long term art documentary projects narrating stories of phenomena or communities she has a personal connection to. She explores the layers of memory and collective memory through photography. By mixing archival material to her images, she reshapes the narratives and creates dialogue between the present and the past. Her most recent work has been driven by new materialist thinking, investigating the photographic materialities and encountering with organic matter to create abstract images together with the environment to address ideas of more-than-human connections.

Leinonen's work has been widely exhibited in private shows in Finnish institutions and galleries including the Finnish Museum of Photography, Oulu Art Museum and Gallery Hippolyte among other venues. Her Äimärautio -photobook was a nominee for the Photobook of the Year 2019 -award. Her works can be found in several collections in Finland including the State Art Commission and the Finnish Museum of Photography.

Contact

Kati LeinonenTel. +358 (0) 40 725 2532—

Upcoming exhibitions

Seaweed Experimentations will exhibit in Oulu Artists Union in September 2026 and in Photocentrum Raseborg from January 2027.

Curriculum Vitae

Artist Kati Leinonen, Photography and Video
she/her
Master of Arts
Born 1974 in Oulu, Finland

Education

2013 MA Audiovisual Media Culture, University of Lapland, Rovaniemi, Finland
1999 BA (Hons) Photography, London College of Printing, London, UK
1997 BTEC Higher National Diploma in Photography, Berkshire College of Art and Design, Reading, UK

Coming Exhibitions

2027 Seaweed Experimentations, Fotocentrum Raseborg, Finland
2026 Seaweed Experimentations, Oulu Artists' Association Gallery, Oulu, Finland

Selected Exhibitions

2025 Pastureland, Gallery Raami, Nokia, Finland
2024 Pastureland, Oulu Artists' Association Gallery, Oulu, Finland
2023 Changing Materialities of Photographic Portrait, Gallery Valo at Arktikum, Rovaniemi, Finland
2022 Äimärautio, Sarka Museum, Loimaa, Finland
2022 Vastapuu, Hippolyte Korjaamo, Helsinki, Finland
2020 Vastapuu. Part I: The Legacy, Northern Photographic Center, Oulu, Finland
2019 Äimärautio, Oulu Art Museum, Finland
2019 Äimärautio, Gallery Ratamo, Jyväskylä, Finland
2018 Äimärautio, Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki, Finland
2017 Sense of Place, Gallery Harmaja, Oulu, Finland
2016 Äimärautio – Part I, Gallery Nykyaika, Tampere, Finland
2015 Mirrors & Cracks with Eija Timonen, Vaasan Art Hall, Finland
2014 Reflections, Northern Photographic Center, Oulu, Finland
2014 Lifes – Wet Plate Collodion Portraits, Victor Barsokevitsch Center, Kuopio, Finland
2011 Lifes – Wet Plate Collodion Portraits, Gallery Hippolyte, Helsinki, Finland
2010 Wet Plate Collodion Portraits, Northern Photographic Center, Oulu, Finland

Selected Group Exhibitions

2025 From this Neck of the Woods, Oulu Art Museum, Finland
2019 883 Pages – Finnish Photobook Awards 2019, Gallery Hippolyte, Helsinki, Finland
2019 Photobook exhibition, Belfast Photo Festival, Ireland
2019 Photobook exhibition, Athens Photo Festival, Greece
2019 Head On Photo Festival, Sydney, Australia
2018 Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize 2018, National Portrait Gallery, London, UK
2018 Common Dreams, Victor Barsokevitsch Photographic Center, Kuopio, Finland
2017 Portrait Now! The Museum of National History, Frederiksborg Castle, Denmark
2013 Magic and Dreams, Dudelange, Luxembourg
2013 Valon houkutus – Finnish Photographic Art 2013, Lahti Art Museum
2011 Fotofinlandia Competition Finalists' Exhibition, Sanomatalo, Helsinki, Finland
2011 ArtOulu, galleria Valve, Oulu, Finland
2010 Union of Finnish Art Assosiations Yearly Exhibition, Cable Factory, Helsinki, Finland
2010 Art Fair Suomi 2010, Cable Factory, Helsinki, Finland
2010 ArtOulu, galleria Valve, Oulu, Finland

Publications

2018 Äimärautio -photobook, Raw View Editions

Abstracts

2026 Entanglements of Art & Science – Rethinking the Ways of Distributing Knowledge (Kati Leinonen, Taija Jyrkäs, Marko Kantomaa), Paula Rantakallio Symposium, University of Oulu
2022 Materialities of a Photographic Portrait, Gender Studies Conference, University of Oulu
2016 Materialities in the Construction of Collodion Positive, Helsinki PhotoMedia Conference, Aalto University, Finland
2015 Tintype in Exploration of Contemporary Portrait, Rethinking Early Photography Conference, University of Lincoln, UK

Public Works and Competitions

2026 Flow of Time, environmental artwork with natural stones and text together with graphic designer and architect Tuomas Mujunen. Part of Sanginkontu Art Trails organised by Association for Rural Culture and Education
2025 Käpykivi together with architect Tuomas Mujunen, 3rd place in an open art competiton for Joensuu, the European Forest Capital, organized by The North Karelian Chamber of Commerce
2019 Finnish Photobook Awards finalist
2011 Fotofinlandia finalist with two series Still Men and Lifes

Grants

2026 Finnish Cultural Foundation (working grant) | City of Oulu
2025 Art Promotion Centre Finland
2023 Art Promotion Centre Finland (Public Display Grant for Visual Artists)
2022 Jokes – Foundation for the Promotion of Journalistic Culture
2019 Kone Foundation (3-year working grant)
2019 Art Promotion Centre Finland | Visek – Centre for the Promotion of Visual Art
2018 Art Promotion Centre Finland (for the production of a photographic art book)
2017 Art Promotion Centre Finland (working grant) | City of Oulu | Jokes
2016 Finnish Cultural Foundation | Alfred Kordelin Foundation (working grant)
2015 Arts Promotion Center Finland's Visual Arts Committee | Arts Promotion Center Finland's Arts Council of North Ostrobothnia and Kainuu
2014 Finnish Cultural Foundation's North Ostrobothnia Regional Fund | Arts Promotion Center Finland's Photographic Art Committee
2013 Finnfoto
2012 Finnish Cultural Foundation's North Ostrobothnia Regional Fund
2011 Finnish Cultural Foundation's North Ostrobothnia Regional Fund (working grant) | Arts Council for the Province of Oulu | National Council for Photographic Art | Finnfoto

Residences

2027 Väinö Tanner Foundation recidency in Mazzano Romano Italy (Sept)
2026 Living Landscape residency in Vadsø, Norway. Organized by Northern Photographic Centre and the Finnish–Norwegian Cultural Institute
2025 Konst i Halland artist in residence, organized by KulttuuriKauppila Art Centre and Konst i Halland
2009 & 2013 Arts Promotion Centre Finland's residency in Matera, Italy

Memberships

Northern Photographic Center – Photo North, Head of the Board 2017– | Member of the Board 2011–2014
Arts Promotional Center Committee of North Ostrobothnia and Kainuu, member 2013–2014
Finnish Association of Photographic Artists, member
Kuvasto