Spouse Sylvi Kunnas | Children Kirsi Kunnas | |
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Grandchildren Martti Syrjä, Pantse Syrjä Similar Sylvi Kunnas, Kirsi Kunnas, Martti Syrjä, Pantse Syrjä | ||
Väinö Ilmari Kunnas (12 April 1896 Vyborg - 10 February 1929, Helsinki) was a Finnish Expressionist painter.
Life
His parents were the painters Mikko Kunnas (originally Keränen) and Helena Varonen. Due to his mother's early death, his education was interrupted. After the family moved to Sortavala, he was able to attend an arts and crafts school, graduating in 1912. When they returned home, he studied drawing at the Vyborg art school until 1917. He also studied music with the composer Toivo Kuula.
He moved to Helsinki in 1920, where he studied at the Finnish Art Society drawing school from 1920-1921. After graduating, his economic situation was rather precarious and he had to take full-time work as an assistant to the architect, Johan Sigfrid Sirén. He began to exhibit during these years, and became a member of the art association "Nuoret" (Youth) as well as Tulenkantajat, a literary-cultural society.
In 1924, he married the painter, Sylvia Alice Karlsson, and that same year their daughter, Kirsi Kunnas, was born. She became a well-known poet and children's book author.
He died suddenly of unspecified causes in 1929. During his brief career, he went from Expressionism to experiments with more abstract modern styles. His major works consist of portraits of cultural personalities and depictions of the urban environment.