Art of Integrity: A Holistic Art Practice for Presence and Fulfillment

Art of Integrity (in Finnish, Hyvän taide, “art of the good”) is Osku Leinonen’s way of seeing art, artistic experience, and expression as one integrated whole, one that shapes both performer and audience. It is not “good art” as someone else defines it. It is art summoned from within, and its core is acceptance: of one’s own life, of oneself, and of impermanence. It invites people to realize their potential and to live more wholly and curiously.

Presence and the ability to listen are central. We cultivate our capacity to perceive what is. Leinonen’s practice brings together Butoh dance, Qigong, and the visual arts. He lives and works in Tampere, Finland.

Where to Begin

• Photography: surfaces, traces, and self-portraits. Contemplative image-making.
• Butoh Art: the philosophy and practice behind the work.
• Performances: what Butoh performance is, its history, and its films.
• Short Films: Butoh-inspired films and slideshows.
• Health Qigong Videos: nine routines plus a seated version.
• Workshops: Butoh, Health Qigong, and physical theatre for individuals and groups.
• Biography: training, theatre work, and teaching.

Osku Leinonen Photography

Fine art photography exploring time, memory, and presence through nature and self-portraiture.

Osku Leinonen is a photographer, Qigong instructor, performer, and instructor for people with developmental disabilities. His main areas of focus are contemplative photography, creative self-portrait photography, mask theatre, physical theatre, and Butoh dance.

News: Honorable Mention, LensCulture Black and White International Photo Awards 2026

My series “A Station Without Trains” received an Honorable Mention in the Selfie / Self-Portrait category of the Black and White International Photo Awards 2026. I’m grateful for the recognition, and congratulations to all the awarded photographers. Their galleries are full of thoughtful, inspiring work.

The series is a poetic night vision on the surface of a frozen lake: an imagined station where no trains arrive, yet everything passes.

For me, this project is about presence, transience, and shared solitude. It is about how stillness can reveal motion, and how absence can become a form of memory.

View the Creative Self-Portrait Photography Series

You can also visit LensCulture’s Black & White Photography Awards.

A Distinctive Vision

Self-portraiture is at the heart of Osku’s work. He has a distinctive feeling for space, movement, stillness, and light. His choice of scenes and the rhythm between images give his photographs a quality that feels new.

He often uses himself as the model, which brings out the overlooked, abstract aspects of being human. His ongoing series, Creative Self-Portrait Photography, shows how personal each shoot becomes.

From Performance to Photography

Osku came to photography after a long history in performance, which gave him a foundation for bringing new dimensions to the photographic tradition. Over the years he has built a deep connection between photography and a contemplative way of seeing.

He has learned to meet the present moment: to sense and see, to relax, and to receive. By immersing himself fully in the act of photographing, he reveals the inner dimensions of each subject.

Photography as an Act of Listening

Osku works with only two tools, a camera and the body. He acts as a mirror to what lies beneath the noise and bustle around his subjects and their minds. His aim is to see more clearly, and to listen. For him, photography is an act of acceptance.

When he is not photographing or creating new work, he enjoys walking and the occasional movie.

Visit my SmugMug Photo Gallery

Visit my Picfair Photo Gallery

More about the work: Photography.

Butoh

Butoh is a contemplative, creative, and humane way to deepen presence, corporeality, sensitivity, and interaction. It is a bow toward Butoh and a reaching out to life. It suits people of all ages, and everyone’s life experience is the starting point.

No experience in movement techniques or dance is needed. Space, time, and energy are our frames, and our focus is the original body, the true self, and awareness. We begin with the body, the foundation of movement, and let it guide us into dance.

Explore the Butoh-Inspired Self-Portrait Photography Series

Read more: Butoh Art, Performances, and Workshops.

Qigong

The core idea of Health Qigong is to bring together physical movement, breathing rhythms, and Chinese medical principles to exercise and regulate body, breath, and mind. It aims to strengthen the whole body, not only the muscles but also the tendons and internal organs. It supports the smooth flow of qi through the primary meridians and cultivates awareness of how the body moves.

Watch the routines on the Health Qigong Videos page.