Roope Rainisto

Roope Rainisto was born in 1979 in Finland and is based in Helsinki. He is an artist, designer, photographer, and filmmaker known for his work with AI generated imagery and post photography. Rainisto studied Information Networks at the Helsinki University of Technology, earning a Master of Science degree with a focus on human centered information systems. Before fully transitioning into art, he worked for more than 25 years in the design industry, including roles at Microsoft and Nokia. He is the co-founder and Chief Design Officer of the virtual and mixed reality company Varjo. 

Rainisto began working with generative AI during the early 2020s as an extension of his long engagement with photography. During the COVID 19 lockdowns, he started using AI image generation systems as “virtual cameras” to create imagined scenes and environments. His work explores the boundaries between photography and AI generated images through what he describes as post photography. Drawing inspiration from photography, film, music, and literature, he creates images that question ideas of reality, memory, and perception. His goal is to create images that may not appear fully real but still feel believable to the viewer. Rainisto often works with custom trained AI models and techniques such as Dreambooth training, inpainting, and AI upscaling, while also editing images by hand. Collections such as Life In West America, REWORLD, and Vacation use the visual language of photography together with the distortions and artifacts of generative systems. Rainisto treats the distortions and glitches of AI systems as part of the artistic process rather than something to correct or hide. 

His work has been presented internationally in exhibitions and fairs focused on photography, AI generated imagery, and emerging digital art practices, including Paris Photo 2023, Photo London 2024, and Every Day We Have to Invent the Reality of This World: AI Post Photography at the California Museum of Photography. In 2023, a print of Auto Dream No. 3 entered the JPMorgan Chase Art Collection following its presentation at Paris Photo.