Marleen Suvi

Marleen Suvi (b. 1998) is a contemporary artist whose work delves deeply into personal and collective memory. She received her Master of Contemporary Art (2023) and Bachelor of Painting (2020) from the Estonian Academy of Arts. Suvi's art explores the complex relationship between the human body and soul, often through self-portraits that question the nature of self-encounter, selfishness, and self-representation in a sexual context.

Drawing on personal photographic archives, Suvi's work contrasts the security afforded by family with the freedom and self-sacrifice of independent living. Her paintings, while rooted in photographic imagery, are executed in oil on canvas to amplify and distill personal experiences into universal human emotions. This approach aims to highlight the timeless depth of her subjects, emphasizing the importance of captured moments and transforming them into broader human experiences.

Marleen Suvi recently exhibited “Forever in Bloom" (Vaal Gallery, 2024, curated by Kaisa Maasik) and “Gentle Gestures of Self" (EKA Gallery, 2024, curated by Kaisa Maasik). She was also one of the recipients of the Helju Rossmann Schneider Scholarship.