Shots from the Ice: Celebrating 30 years of Jukka Rautio's photography

Jukka Rautio is a pioneer of Finnish ice hockey photography and a trailblazer in flash photography. Rautio’s work has significantly influenced the visual style of Finnish sports photography for over three decades. A product of Tappara’s famous ’68 generation, he lived and breathed the world of ice hockey from the rink at Vuorentaustan Elementary School all the way to the hockey mecca of Hakametsä.

In 1986, alongside his hockey career, he began his career as a freelance photographer in the world of magazines with Urpo Lahtinen and Lehtimiehet. He finally traded his stick for a camera in 1991 and found a new position on the sidelines of the rink. During the 1993–1994 Liiga season, he installed Finland’s first ceiling-mounted lighting system at the Hakametsä Ice Arena, ushering in a new era for the technical and artistic standards of Finnish hockey photography.

Rautio has photographed for nearly all of Finland’s leading newspaper publishers, advertising agencies, and book publishers, and served as the official photographer for the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) at the Ice Hockey World Championships from 1998 to 2011. He also served as the IIHF photographer for the Olympic ice hockey tournaments in Turin in 2006 and Vancouver in 2010.

Throughout his long career, Rautio was responsible for the photography for the Finnish Ice Hockey League’s trading cards from 1993 to 2021, served as the chief photographer for Jääkiekkolehti magazine for nearly three decades, and has produced the Finnish Ice Hockey League’s seasonal photo shoots from 2002 to 2026. His photographs have captured the great moments in Finnish hockey history, legendary players, and the sport’s constant evolution in a unique way.

Rautio’s hockey-themed works include the extensive book series Liigan Laukauksia (2008–2016, 9 volumes), the commemorative volume Liigatähdet, and Leijonien Olympiataival – Sotshin olympiakiekko 2014. These works constitute a significant visual record of the modern history of Finnish ice hockey.

This exhibition brings together decades of work from the pinnacle of ice hockey—images of speed, power, emotion, and decisive moments on the ice.