BIOGRAPHY
Since her first exhibition of paintings in 1992, the Finnish born artist Mia Leijonstedt (b.1971) has pursued her interest in artist’s books and studied both traditional and modern bookbinding skills. Having lived in the UK for over a decade, she relocated to the UAE in 2006, where she now creates artist books and designer bindings that span several creative disciplines. She has also returned to her earlier love of painting. She has exhibited internationally in over 40 shows including the UK, Ireland, Japan, Canada, the US, France and Finland as well as has won a dozen awards for both artistic and technical merit – including the Open Choice Book 1st Prize in the Designer Bookbinders Annual Competition in the British Library, London in 2005.

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ARTIST STATEMENT
My art is about storytelling. From the early days of childhood, I’ve been fascinated with fairytales and mythology. Over the years I’ve explored the world of stories on many different levels in my work. First in my paintings of mythological female characters and then progressing onto the book form itself as an artistic vehicle for both visual and literary stories. The book as an object is symbolically a very rich and independent format. Its history and cultural significance provide endless scope for artistic discoveries and interpretation, not only being a container for stories but being a story in itself, its whole life and existence in time being read from its tactile details and structural function. I concern myself with the “Complete Book” where all the details work together to form a consistent whole, everything ties together to advance the storytelling. My paintings also have their roots in the book history, drawing a lot of inspiration from the medieval manuscripts and the way ancient native cultures recorded their knowledge. I create storylines in visual form, much like illustrating an inner journey, with archetypal connections to the outside world. I hope to create a certain resonance in those who see my work, to stir a sense of recollection of what we all share in our collective subconscious, and to hopefully inspire the viewer to explore their own personal stories residing within.