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Akseli Gallen-Kallela (April 26 1865 - March 7
1931)
was a Finland|Finnish painter who is most of all
known for his illustrations of the Kalevala, the
Finland|Finnish national epic (illustration,
right).

He was born Axél Waldemar Gallén in Pori (in
Swedish (language)|Swedish Björneborg), Finland.
His father Peter Gallén worked as police chief
and lawyer.  At the age of 11 he was sent to
Helsinki to study at a grammar school. He also
attended drawing classes at the Finnish Art
Society.

In 1884 he moved to Paris, to study at the
Académie Julian. In Paris he became friends with
the Finnish painter Albert Edelfelt, the Norwegian
painter Adam Dörnberger, and the Swedish writer
August Strindberg.

In 1890 he married Mary Slöör. The couple had
three children, Impi Marjatta, Kirsti and Jorma
Gallen-Kallela|Jorma. On their honeymoon to East
Karelia, Gallen-Kallela started collecting
material for his depictions of the Kalevala.

For the Paris World Fair in 1900 Gallen-Kallela
painted frescoes for the Finnish Pavilion. He also
painted the frescoes for the Jusélius Mausoleum
in Pori between 1901 and 1903. The frescoes were
destroyed during World War II but later repainted
by the artist's son Jorma.

He officially finnicized his name to the more
Finnish sounding Akseli Gallen-Kallela in 1907.

In 1918 the regent, Carl Gustaf Emil
Mannerheim|General Mannerheim invited
Gallen-Kallela to design the flags, official
decorations and uniforms for the newly independent
Finland. In 1919 he was appointed aide-de-camp to
Mannerheim. 

In 1925 he began the illustrations for his "Great
Kalevala". This was still unfinished when he died
in Stockholm on March 7th, 1931, while returning
from a lecture in Copenhagen, Denmark.

== Paintings ==
* The Old Woman and the Cat (Akka ja kissa) (1885)
* Démasquée (1888)
* The Forging of the Sampo (1893)
* The Defense of the Sampo (1895)
* Lemminkäinen's Mother (Lemminkäisen äiti)
(1897)
* The Aino triptych (1891)
* Kullervo's Curse (Kullervon kirous) (1899)