Biography
Ritva Kangas is a Finnish artist and printmaker born in Veteli in 1947 who lives and works in Kokkola, Finland. She studied at the University of Art and Design (now Aalto University) and received her Master of Arts from the University of Lapland in 1995.
Kangas has had an extensive career in art education, working as an art teacher at various secondary and upper secondary schools, at the University of Jyvaskyla (1990-1993 and 1995-1996), and as principal of the Art School for Children and Youth in Kokkola (1982-2011). Her dedication to art education has been recognized with the Art Educator of the Year award in 2008 from the Finnish Association of Art Schools, a Cultural Prize from the Ostrobothnian Arts Council in 2009, and a Cultural Award from the Finnish Cultural Foundation in 2010.
Her printmaking practice includes woodcut and mokuhanga techniques. She is a member of the Finnish Wood Engravers' Society (Suomen Puupiirtajien Seura). She was selected for the juried exhibition at the 2024 International Mokuhanga Conference (IMC) in Echizen, Japan, where her prints were displayed in the Europe and Africa regional exhibition.
Key Facts
- Nationality
- 🇫🇮Finland
- Movement
- Contemporary Mokuhanga
- Works Indexed
- 1
Frequently Asked Questions
Ritva Kangas is a Finnish artist and printmaker born in Veteli in 1947 who lives and works in Kokkola, Finland. She studied at the University of Art and Design (now Aalto University) and received her Master of Arts from the University of Lapland in 1995.
Ritva Kangas's work was shaped by the Contemporary Mokuhanga tradition in Japanese woodblock printmaking. Contemporary Mokuhanga: Contemporary mokuhanga (literally "wood-block print") encompasses artists working from approximately 1970 to the present who continue or reinvent traditional Japanese woodblock printing techniques.
Ritva Kangas is a contemporary printmaker working in the mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock) tradition. Recognition through awards and exhibitions supports growing collector interest. Prices for contemporary mokuhanga prints range from $150 for smaller works to $2,000 for major compositions. Most prints sell in the $240–$800 range. The global mokuhanga community has been growing, with increasing exhibition opportunities and collector interest. Contemporary mokuhanga represents an affordable entry point for collectors.