Mauri Virtanen is an Ecuadorian-Finnish figurative artist known internationally for his watercolor works on equestrian themes and portraits.

Since 2017, he has been the International Watercolor Society (IWS) Representative for Ecuador.

In 2023, he was appointed Ambassador of the Mondial Art Academia (MAA) of France and Canada for Ecuador.

In 2024, he received the appointment as Representative of Urbino in Acquerello from Italy for Ecuador.

He is an Associate Member of the National Watercolor Society (NWS) and an active member of the Union of Painters of Romania.

He works in techniques such as oil, acrylic, and soft pastels.

His works are part of private, corporate, university, and public collections worldwide.

His work has been featured on postage stamps from the Vatican, book covers, and international media such as IRNA, Valahia, IWS Magazine, El Comercio, Balkan, jurnalgiurgiuvean.ro, kvira.ge, and The Designer Magazine.

He resides in Quito, where he studied architecture and has been exhibiting since 2001.

He has received awards in Ecuador, Romania, Finland, Turkey, Georgia, and the Czech Republic.

He seeks to generate a dialogue between the viewer and his art, inspired by horses, portraits, architecture, and everyday scenes.

Since 2015, he has dedicated himself almost exclusively to watercolor.

He has been a special guest at international festivals in Iran, Peru, Turkey, Albania, and Georgia.

Among his recognitions are: Gold Honor Medal 2024 (Peru), Honorable Mention at the MAA Awards 2023, and Golden Brush Award 2022 in Turkey.

He was awarded Best Watercolor Artist at the Tbilisi Festival 2019 and named Honorary Citizen in Giurgiu (Romania) in 2018.

He won First Place in the Romanian Portrait Contest 2016 with his work 'Portrait of Nadia Comaneci'.

He participated in the Prague Festival 2018 and the Elite Exhibition 2017 in Albania.

He was a finalist at ART Taipei (2015-2016), Asia's most important contemporary art fair.

Learn more about Mauri Virtanen