Maija Isola
Encyclopedia
Maija Isola was a leading Finnish
designer of printed textiles. She also had a career as a visual artist.
Central School of Industrial Arts, Isola became principal textile designer for Marimekko
.
In 1964, Isola defied Marimekko founder Armi Ratia's ban on floral patterns, setting the style of the company by painting the famous Unikko (Poppy
) pattern in bold pink, red and black on white; the pattern has been in production ever since.
In 1974, Isola designed the popular pattern Primavera, consisting of stylized Marigold
flowers; this has since been printed in many different colours for tablecloths, plates and other items.
From 1980 to 1987, Isola worked in Marimekko with her daughter, Kristina "who is still one of Marimekko's chief designers".
Ivar Ekman, writing in the New York Times, quotes Marianne Aav, director of the Helsinki
Design Museum: "What we understand as the Marimekko style is very much based on what Maija Isola was doing". Ekman comments "The range of prints that Isola produced for Marimekko is astounding", as the patterns span "minimalistic geometric", "toned-down naturalistic" and "explosion of colors".
Marion Hume, writing in Time Magazine, explains that Isola "was able to mastermind an astonishing range, from the intricate and folkloric Ananas (1962)—which remains one of the most popular prints for the home market—to the radically simple, dramatically enlarged, asymmetrical Unikko poppy (1964), originally in red and in blue, which may be one of the most widely recognized prints on earth.".
According to Tamsin Blanchard, writing in The Observer
, "The designs of Maija Isola - one of the company's original and longest-standing designers - have stood the test of time." Blanchard describes as "timeless" Isola's 1972 Wind design "with its feathery organic tree skeletons in silhouette", her 1957 Putinotko "spiky black-and-white print", her 1963 Melon and her 1956 Stones.
Hannah Booth, writing in The Guardian
, explains that Marimekko's founder, Armi Ratia, "recruited Maija Isola, the first and most important of many young female designers, to create original prints". She describes Isola as "unconventional", leaving her daughter Kristina "to grow up with her grandmother so she could travel the world to find inspiration for her textiles". Booth quotes Finnish novelist Kaari Utrio as saying Isola was "a dangerously original character"; she "belonged to a trailblazing generation" enabling young women to move freely into the arts.
Lesley Jackson, in the aptly titled chapter Op, Pop, and Psychedelia in her textbook Twentieth Century Pattern Design, writes that "from Finland the exuberant all-conquering Marimekko burst on to the international scene" in the 1960s; she illustrates this with one pattern by Vuokko Nurmesniemi
, and three by Isola – Lokki, Melooni, and inevitably Unikko.
Hanna-Liisa Ylipoti notes that "The themes of many Marimekko designs are also very Finnish, portraying Finnish nature. For example, Maija Isola created her Luonto (nature) design [series] using actual plant specimens".
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
designer of printed textiles. She also had a career as a visual artist.
Life and career
After studying painting at the HelsinkiHelsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
Central School of Industrial Arts, Isola became principal textile designer for Marimekko
Marimekko
Marimekko is a Finnish company based in Helsinki that has made important contributions to fashion, especially in the 1960s and 1970s. They are particularly noted for brightly-colored printed fabrics and simple styles, used both in women's garments and in home furnishings.- Foundation :Marimekko was...
.
In 1964, Isola defied Marimekko founder Armi Ratia's ban on floral patterns, setting the style of the company by painting the famous Unikko (Poppy
Poppy
A poppy is one of a group of a flowering plants in the poppy family, many of which are grown in gardens for their colorful flowers. Poppies are sometimes used for symbolic reasons, such as in remembrance of soldiers who have died during wartime....
) pattern in bold pink, red and black on white; the pattern has been in production ever since.
In 1974, Isola designed the popular pattern Primavera, consisting of stylized Marigold
Tagetes
Tagetes is a genus of 56 species of annual and perennial mostly herbaceous plants in the sunflower family . The genus is native to North and South America, but some species have become naturalized around the world. One species, T...
flowers; this has since been printed in many different colours for tablecloths, plates and other items.
From 1980 to 1987, Isola worked in Marimekko with her daughter, Kristina "who is still one of Marimekko's chief designers".
Reception
According to FinnStyle, Isola was "undisputedly the most famous textile designer to have existed at Marimekko", and she "created over 500 prints during her long and colorful employment."Ivar Ekman, writing in the New York Times, quotes Marianne Aav, director of the Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
Design Museum: "What we understand as the Marimekko style is very much based on what Maija Isola was doing". Ekman comments "The range of prints that Isola produced for Marimekko is astounding", as the patterns span "minimalistic geometric", "toned-down naturalistic" and "explosion of colors".
Marion Hume, writing in Time Magazine, explains that Isola "was able to mastermind an astonishing range, from the intricate and folkloric Ananas (1962)—which remains one of the most popular prints for the home market—to the radically simple, dramatically enlarged, asymmetrical Unikko poppy (1964), originally in red and in blue, which may be one of the most widely recognized prints on earth.".
According to Tamsin Blanchard, writing in The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
, "The designs of Maija Isola - one of the company's original and longest-standing designers - have stood the test of time." Blanchard describes as "timeless" Isola's 1972 Wind design "with its feathery organic tree skeletons in silhouette", her 1957 Putinotko "spiky black-and-white print", her 1963 Melon and her 1956 Stones.
Hannah Booth, writing in The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, explains that Marimekko's founder, Armi Ratia, "recruited Maija Isola, the first and most important of many young female designers, to create original prints". She describes Isola as "unconventional", leaving her daughter Kristina "to grow up with her grandmother so she could travel the world to find inspiration for her textiles". Booth quotes Finnish novelist Kaari Utrio as saying Isola was "a dangerously original character"; she "belonged to a trailblazing generation" enabling young women to move freely into the arts.
Lesley Jackson, in the aptly titled chapter Op, Pop, and Psychedelia in her textbook Twentieth Century Pattern Design, writes that "from Finland the exuberant all-conquering Marimekko burst on to the international scene" in the 1960s; she illustrates this with one pattern by Vuokko Nurmesniemi
Vuokko Nurmesniemi
Vuokko Eskolin-Nurmesniemi is a Finnish textile designer. She joined the Marimekko company in 1953 and designed patterns for many of their printed fabrics in the 1950s; together with Maija Isola, she was responsible for most of Marimekko's patterns. Nurmesniemi left Marimekko in 1960 and founded...
, and three by Isola – Lokki, Melooni, and inevitably Unikko.
- Of Lokki, Jackson writes "Isola revolutionized design with her simple, bold, flat patterns, printed on a dramatic scale. The design, whose title means 'seagull', evokes the lapping of waves and the flapping of birds' wings."
- Of the famous Unikko, Jackson explains "This huge, exploded poppy pattern embodies the unbridled design confidence of the mid-1960s, and presages the ebullience and sizzling colours of the flower powerFlower powerFlower power is a slogan used by the American counterculture movement during the late 1960s and early 1970s as a symbol of passive resistance and non-violence ideology. It is rooted in the opposition movement to the Vietnam War. The expression was coined by the American Beat poet Allen Ginsberg in...
era."
Hanna-Liisa Ylipoti notes that "The themes of many Marimekko designs are also very Finnish, portraying Finnish nature. For example, Maija Isola created her Luonto (nature) design [series] using actual plant specimens".
Painting
Isola left Marimekko in 1987. She worked on painting, not textiles, until her death in 2001.Legacy of Marimekko patterns
In 2011, Marimekko flew a hot-air balloon decorated with an enormous version of Unikko over Helsinki, showing that the pattern remains iconic nearly half a century later. Marimekko's marketing policy is to reissue "classics from its fifty-year back catalogue, notably a large group of patterns from the 1950s and 1960s by Maija Isola."Exhibitions
- Maija Isola and Marimekko, Retrospective exhibition, Design Museum (Designmuseo), HelsinkiHelsinkiHelsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland. 24 May 2005 - 4 September 2005.
- Marimekko: Fabric, Fashion, Architecture, Exhibition at Slovene Ethnographic MuseumNational Museum of SloveniaThe National Museum of Slovenia is located in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. It is situated in the Center district of the city near the Tivoli Park....
in LjubljanaLjubljanaLjubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
, SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, 1 July 2009 - 18 October 2009
- Magnifying Nature: 1960s Printed Textiles, Exhibition at Minneapolis Institute of ArtsMinneapolis Institute of ArtsThe Minneapolis Institute of Arts is a fine art museum located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on a campus that covers nearly 8 acres , formerly Morrison Park...
, 5 March 2011 - 21 August 2011.
- Marimekko - The Story of a Nordic Brand, Exhibition at Design Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2 March - 28 May 2007.
External links
- Maija Isola Profile on Marimekko.com
- Maija Isola Profile and images on FinnishDesign.com
- Maija Isola Profile at Scandinavian Design Center
- Maija Isola - profile on BelovedLinens.net
- DesignMuseet - exhibition at Scandinavian Design Museum
- Finn Style - profile on FinnStyle.com
- Maija Isola - The Art Institute of Chicago
- Textile Designers in Finland (2) - global.designdb.com
- Flickr - Maija Isola exhibition