Draft:Eino Romppanen

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Eino Romppanen (Febryary 6th 1940 Mynämäki, Finland – May 28th 2018 Nevada, Yhdysvallat) was an sculpturer born in Finland. He lived in the United States for most of his life. Romppanen's style varied from statues to abstract stone sculptures.

Eino Romppanen

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Eino Romppanen's Portuguese marble sculpture Rapture (2002)

Eino Romppanen Eino Romppanen (February 6, 1940, Mynämäki, Finland – May 28, 2018, Nevada, United States) was a Finnish-born sculptor who created an international career and lived in the United States and Finland. In the 21st century, Eino marketed his works under the artist names Eino and Eino.org. While Eino was most recognized for his exquisite stone sculptures, he also worked in bronze. Unlike most artists who only create the clay model for a sculpture, Eino did all of his own work - clay model, mold making, and casting the bronze. His sculptures ranged between the sizes of "table top" to "monumental." His art emanated from a mind that drew inspiration from, and was constantly renewed by, nature. In his work, Eino ventures into areas of marble sculpting that have not yet been explored by other sculptors. It is during these "speculative journeys" that Eino created works of art that expressed dimensions of light and space equal in proportion to the mass of the stone. The pieces that emerge from his studio are distinctive because of the delicate balance between positive and negative space within the sculpture. While many stone carvers incorporate negative space around a piece, Eino often placed it exquisitely inside of the body, resulting in a work, in which the mass seems supported by the space.

Early Life and Education

Eino's family were Karelian refugees from Vyborg and he spent his early childhood as a war child in Sweden. Eino spent his youth living in Helsinki, until he moved to the United States in 1962. Eino studied psychology and English at Santa Monica College before changing his major to art. He lived in Malibu, California for 18 years early in his career.

Career

Eino’s sculptures have been acquired for many commercial buildings and public spaces throughout the world. They are on display in 22 countries. Many American notables and celebrities acquired his stone sculptures for their own collections. It is estimated he created over 500 works of art, including primarily marble sculptures, bronze sculptures and busts, maquettes, but also wood sculptures, etchings, sculptural paintings, and sandstone carvings.

Eino was into endurance running and worked as a coach and manager of several American endurance runners. Eino started running at the age of 5, having been inspired by his neighbor, the legendary Paavo Nurmi, known as the "Flying Finn." His art often reflected his love of sport. Over the course of his 55+ year career, Eino created many bronze portrait busts of Olympic runners including works for the Berlin Sports Museum and Stockholm Stadium. One of these sculptures was of his friend Frank Shorter, a U.S. Gold Medalist in the 1972 marathon. In Kempelee, Finland in front of Polar Electro's headquarters, Eino's sculpture The Last Meter, unveiled in 1999, depicts Lasse Virén's victory in the 5,000-meter race at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. He also made Virén's more famous victory in the 10,000 meters at the 1972 Munich Olympics into the sculpture Sisu, which was erected in Athens in conjunction with the 2004 Olympics. Eino's statue of Roger Bannister's famous 1954 mile run under four minutes has been on exhibit in the grounds of the Royal Russell School in Croydon, London since 2007. Eino also organized several running events. In 1977, the 20-kilometer Lasse Viren Finnish Invitational running race, organized annually in Malibu, California, began because of his initiative.

Eino created his sculptures in series, there were 10 different series over his 55 year career. Additionally, he created many bronze busts, maquettes (some in bronze), large scale bronze sculptures, carvings in sandstone, drawings, etchings, and sculptural paintings. He worked with various types of stone including Yule Marble, Georgia Marble, Arizona Marble, California Marble, Vermont Marble, Portuguese Marble, Brazilian Blue Quartzite, Finnish Granite, and Italian Marble. He has also worked extensively with Mexican Onyx, using it for one of his largest bodies of work, the Nature Series. Eino found marble both exciting and challenging. His last unveiling was in Seinäjoki, Finland in December 2017. The work titled Suomineito 100 was in honor of Finland's 100 year anniversary of being an independent country. Eino explained, “The pedestal of the sculpture depicts the sacrifices required for Finland's independence. A black granite pedestal depicts the grief and Karelian red granite depicts the blood shed for our independence. You can go through the sculpture. Everyone can reflect, in their own way, on Finland's past and future, our 100 years of independence, and the freedom it brings.” The sculpture is on the grounds of Seinäjoki high school in Seinäjoki, Finland. Eino was so proud to have his work recognized in his native country for such a special memory.

Exhibitions & Collections

Eino’s works have been exhibited in the United States and internationally since 1964.

• Seinäjoki, Finland 2017
  
• Luhta, Finland 2015
  
• Espoo, Finland 2014
  
• Nordic Heritage Museum 2013
  
• Austin, Texas 2012
  
• London, England 2007 - Present
  
• Copenhagen, Denmark 2006
  
• Aarhus, Denmark 2005
  
• Galleria Sam Vanni, Helsinki, Finland 2003 - 2004
  
• Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia 2003*
  
• North Georgia State College, Dahlonega, Georgia 2000
  
• Finnish Embassy, Washington, D.C. 1999
  
• Centennial Olympic Games, Atlanta, Georgia 1996
  
• Berlin Sports Museum, Berlin 1995
  
• The Benefits of Marble (UNICEF), Santa Monica, California 1993*
  
• National Sports Museum of Finland, Helsinki 1987
  
• Pepperdine University, Malibu, California 1985*
  
• California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 1979*
  
• National Endowment of the Arts, Century City, California 1978*
  
• Pepperdine University, Malibu, California 1973*
  
• California Exposition, Sacramento, California 1971
  
• Gallerie Juarez, Los Angeles/Palm Springs, California 1968 - 1970*
  
• Roz Gallery, Santa Monica, California 1968*
  
• International Design Center, Los Angeles, California 1965*
  
• City of Santa Monica, California 1965
  
• Lincoln Jr. High School, Santa Monica, California 1964
  

(*) denotes a one-man show