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Finnish art - Erkki Tanttu - Rymy-Eetu, Misc.

Erkki Tanttu (1907-1985) was a popular Finnish cartoonist and illustrator in the mid-20th century. He is best known for illustrating hundreds of Finnish folk sayings in a format similar to a magazine cartoon or a gag panel. Eleven book compilations of these were published from 1945 to 1976. In real life these "winged words" were used as short parables or ironic metaphors, but Tanttu typically chose to depict the literal meaning of the words. Today, the value of these drawings is in the ethnographic detail in which they observe how Finnish people of old looked, dressed and worked. This work also lead Tanttu to illustrate many classic works of Finnish literature.

In a much more simplistic style, Tanttu also drew the weekly comic strip Rymy-Eetu for over 40 years, starting in the early 1930s. The strips originally ran without words, but a selection of them was annually collected into a 16-page comic book every Christmas, and then rhyming typeset captions (written afterwards by someone else) were added below the pictures, perhaps to somehow make them appear more literary, and thus, "worthy".

The artist's son recalls that although the comic strip Rymy-Eetu made his father a hero to his schoolyard friends, to Tanttu himself drawing it was a chore. "He became very grumpy when he had to draw them and preferred to churn out ten at a time." Nevertheless, since the strip was regularly published, it offered the freelance artist the rare luxury of a steady paycheck, so he kept producing it decade after decade.

The folk saying cartoons, on the other hand, were much more pleasant work for the artist - and also, back in the day, much more highly regarded. Tanttu held several exhibitions of his work, and sold many of the originals during his lifetime. Much of his illustration work is inked on tracing paper. His comic pages, however, Tanttu treated very casually, often flipping them over and using the reverse sides (often cut up) for something else, even just as a backing board for his more valued tracing paper drawings. Occasionally he could even use a large page as wrapping paper!

Tanttu also produced hundreds of book covers, and as a fine art project, a line of woodcuts.

There are 10 Pieces of Art In This Gallery.    

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Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1956

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	2548
Comments:	1
Added to Site:	9/10/2012

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1956
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
2548 Views, 1 Comment

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Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1962

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	2372
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	7/5/2012

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1962
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
2372 Views

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Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1955

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	0
Views	2288
Comments:	1
Added to Site:	10/1/2005

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1955
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
2288 Views, 1 Comment

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Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1943

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	2377
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	7/5/2012

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Erkki Tanttu, Rymy-Eetu 1943
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
2377 Views

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Tanttu, cartoon illustration, 1950

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Illustration
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	817
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	1/19/2015

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Tanttu, cartoon illustration, 1950
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
817 Views

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WWII cartoon Molotov with Satan, 1940

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	1781
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	12/11/2012

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

WWII cartoon Molotov with Satan, 1940
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
1781 Views

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Tanttu, WWII illustration, 1940

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Illustration
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	118
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	3/19/2023

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Tanttu, WWII illustration, 1940
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
118 Views

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WWII propaganda cartoon, 1940

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	3557
Comments:	2
Added to Site:	12/11/2012

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

WWII propaganda cartoon, 1940
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
3557 Views, 2 Comments

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Tanttu, Hakkapeliitta illustration, 1937

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Mixed Media
Art Type:	Illustration
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	115
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	9/14/2021

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Tanttu, Hakkapeliitta illustration, 1937
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
115 Views

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Erkki Tanttu, book ad poster 1961

Art Details

Artist:	Erkki Tanttu (All)
Media Type:	Paint - Watercolor
Art Type:	Cover
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views	816
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	3/2/2013

About the Owner

Jyrki Vainio
Member Since:	October 2005

Erkki Tanttu, book ad poster 1961
Artist: Erkki Tanttu (All)
816 Views

There are 10 Pieces of Art In This Gallery.    

About the Owner Jyrki Vainio Joined: October 2005 Last Login: September 2025 Ebay Id: jyrki_vainio Website: http://www.jyrkivainio.com/ Country: FINLAND On CAF: Jyrki's Want List Artworks Commented On Liked Art Site Activity on CAF

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