Adventures in Tampere: Justice and Nature

I arrived early before opening hours at Mältinranta Art Centre. I walked in with the cleaners without realising that I might be imposing. The space was streaked in early spring light and glowed with still moist floors, an early morning hubbub of commotion playing accompaniment to the last drips of a coffee peculator. After initial confusion as to why I was there the lovely worker bees let me in to the gallery to discover the exhibitions and the large paintings of Saija Kivikangas in the main exhibition space and smaller paintings and installation paint giants of Paula Puoskari in the Mältinranta Studio.

Paula Puoskari:  left:Justitia's headstrong daughter  (Justitian omapäinen tytär), 2014, acrylic on law book pages, 305 x 120 cm; right. Justitia’s acolyte Artiksella (Justitian apuri Arktiksella), 2013, acrylic on law book pages, 341 x 115 cm.

On entering Paula Puoskari's exhibition Janus and Justitia, I was arrested by the sight of two  giants. Their limbs dragging on the floor with vacant expressions on two colourful faces looking down at me, curious, judging. The two giants Justitia's headstrong daughter (Justitian omapäinen tytär) and Justitia's acolyte Artiksella (Justitian apuri Arktiksella) are created using acrylic paints on the pages of a law book and sometimes simply the paint itself. They are partially transparent and exude an animalistic quality and ancient knowledge that I found calming.

Paula Puoskari: Headfirst (Päistikkaa), 2013, acrylic and nails, 225 x 70 cm

The other works in the space were primarily paintings excluding another blue acrylic figurine Headfirst (Päistikkaa) that reminded me of drowning. The more traditional paintings in the space were also exciting and provided a good contrast to the more sculptural works, but in the end became more of a living room backdrop for the other works. Pouskari has also worked as a lawyer giving further credence to her use of material and subject matter.

Saija Kivikangas, Nro 030214, 2014, mixed-media on plywood, 244 x 244 cm

In the main gallery Saija Kivikangas and her exhibition, When is it perfect?, dominated the room with conservatively hung and spaced large scale mixed-media paintings on plywood. Her work Nro 030214, immediately reminded me of Peter Doig's Canoe-Lake which I had seen years before at the Saatchi gallery in London. The flowing water alone would have been enough to connect them but the paintings of Kivikangas's although bereft of human figures have a human presence in them that echoes, in my mind, the sense of confusion and loss found in Canoe-Lake.  

Peter Doig, Canoe-Lake. 1997-98, oil on canvas

Her work and the names hinted at snapshots of moments, personal moments mainly of nature but at times the paintings became more architectural in nature as was evident in Nro 010114. All in all the exhibition worked for me, it has left me questioning and wondering, returning to the imagery and creating a platform to view her work. 

Saija Kivikangas, Nro 010114, 2014, mixed-media on plywood, 244 x 366 cm

Exhibition: Studio Mältinranta, 8.-25.3.2014

Paula Puoskari, paintings and giants, Janus and Justia

Exhibition: Gallery Mältinranta, 8.-25.3.2014

Saija Kivikangas, Paintings, When is it perfect?

Taidekeskus Mältinranta 

Mon - Tue 12–18, Fri - Sun 12–16.

Kuninkaankatu 2

33210 Tampere

Finland

Adventures in Tampere: a city of theatre, art and vitality

So I may be a bit biased here, but Tampere is a great little city. (my bias being that I was born here). Known as the Manchester of Finland, because of it's historical background as a factory city, it has grown in the past few years to compete with its British rival in other areas as well.

I caught the morning train from Helsinki and arrived a measly hour and a half later in Tampere. Too early for galleries and museums, but perfectly on time for a morning coffee and homemade Karelian pie at the Sthålberg bakery. Although not the best place in town for breakfast treats, it does have the added bonus of being on the way to my first gallery destination today, as well as, a handy socket to plug my computer in to. It is also a lovely place to plan an attack for viewing art. My time in Tampere is limited, so making a plan that fits around seeing friends and family is a good idea.

The plan and following “articles” will be on three exhibition venues I visited on friday the 21^st of March 2014. Since I am writing a few weeks after my visit some of these exhibitions are no longer available for view, but hopefully you can catch the artists at a new venue some time soon and possibly visit new exhibitions at these venues. I visited the Mältinranta Art Center, Sara Hildén Art Museum and Gallery Rajatila and encountered justice, nature, frailty and an old friend who I was able to view through new eyes.

Travels in Lapland

Last week I travelled to Lapland for a few days and stayed at a place called Kakslauttanen near Saariselkä. It is an interesting place for several reasons: The first being that as a Finnish national I could not find one person who spoke Finnish in the entire establishment, making it one of the oddest multicultural melting pots I have ever visited, particularly since the whole point of visiting Kakslauttanen is to get to know Finnish Lapland.

The second interesting thing about Kakslauttanen was the fact that it is filled to the brim with decorative and at times practical art. Unfortunately the artists who created the works are not so visible, but with a bit of googling I was able to find the reason why all this sculptural work can be found there. It is the Arctic Arts Week that is organised every year at the apex of summer and autumn. Artists from around the world make their way to Kakslauttanen to create new works, as part of this residency like week, the artists are asked to leave their works at Kakslauttanen at the end of their stay. The week is hosted by the owner of Kakslauttanen, Jussi Eiramo, who covers half of the cost of travel for artists and offers free accommodation and food.

KAKSLAUTTANEN, FI-99830 SAARISELKÄ, FINLAND

Saariselkä also had an interesting bit of informative art showcased at a small museum on the upper floor of the Saariselkä Tourist Information centre called Siula. The exhibition is called DestinationNorthernmost Europe and primarily shows factual information about Lapland and its nature. There was also a series of videos being played in an panoramic video auditorium with 7 screens. This was possibly by far the most conceptual construction of nature films I have ever witnessed. It was fantastic!

The problem was that it was not meant as a conceptual view of wildlife and the yearly cycle, but had become one probably due to bad maintenance. I fell in love with it immediately! The screens were in the wrong order, the colours were off and there was an alarming amount of still-life animals pasted onto moving images of Lapland. In short it was a hilarious, slightly dizzying 20 minutes of my life.

Another thing I fell in love with was the explanation texts used for the photographs. My favourite quote in a text was “The artistic abilities of the wind are not too shabby either – blowing sand can accomplish a whole lot.” this was in reference to natural rock formations. Whoever wrote the texts for this exhibition, my hats off to you! You have given me a wonderful new way to discuss nature in terms generally reserved for contemporary art.

Art Around the Clock

Lately I have been running in to a lot of classical, practically Greek or Roman, sculpture and paintings. These are not original artefacts from centuries past and they are not artworks by Neoclassicist or Renaissance artists, these artworks are created by contemporary arts practitioners. 

Li Hongbo “Goddess of the Parthenon”, paper, 45 x 22 x 25 cm, 2013 (Courtesy Klein Sun Gallery, New York. © Li Hongbo)

Probably the most well known artist working in this way currently is Li Hongbo. It is almost impossible not to have run into his expanding paper art objects. Magical objects that contain the happy and joyous extravagance of the origins of the technique best known from chinese paper-lantern decorations where Hongbo's original inspiration is said to have come from. Currently you can see Hongbo's work at the KleinSun Gallery in New York in his exhibition: Tools of Study, which runs until March 2^nd 2014. The sculptures themselves seem very pleasing in the way that having a cool new app on your iPhone is pleasing. 

Klein Sun Gallery

525 West 22nd Street New York

NY 10011

U.S.A.

Phone: (212) 255-4388

Monday through Saturday 10AM – 6PM

Li Hongbo / Tools of Study at Klein Sun Gallery from Colossal on Vimeo.

Another artist that caught my eye this week was Viggo Wallensköld who is currently having a  retrospective exhibition Variations (Variaatioita) at the Hämeenlinna Art Museum 22.2.–4.5.2014. Wallensköld paints figures who are often different, deformed, mutilated or part machine. There is a quality of unabashed loneliness and fragility to his work that is reminiscent of the Romantic Poets of the mid 18^th century. 

Hämeenlinna Art Museum

Viipurintie 213200 Hämeenlinna, Finland
p. (03) 621 3017

Tue-Thu 11-18
Fri-Sun 11-17
Mondays closed

Helsingin Sanomat 22.2.2014

I also went to see a couple of exhibitions this week around and about Helsinki. There is some interesting miniature floating worlds for view currently at Gallery Sculptor by Jouna Karsi: 12.2.-2.3.2014. The sculptures are glances from contemporary culture, with scenes that resemble title sequences of movies. 

Vuoristorata, Jouna Karsi

I also saw the Roberto Pugliese exhibition at MUU Gallery The Space Of A Year. This exhibition consisted of a single installation utilising two video screens and an elevated floor, which viewers could use to create their chosen soundtrack. The exhibition was a lot of fun though visually it felt a bit anticlimactic. Still well worth a visit. The exhibition runs until March 2^nd 2014.

The Space of a Year, Roberto Pugliese

I also went to Gallery G on a whim and I must say that I was surprised by the works of Kimi Pakarinen. In the past I have not been a fan of his paintings, but in this exhibition called Exploring My Realites, and despite the trite title of the exhibition, the paintings are riveting. They are made with colours that should not work and scribble like a teenagers first tagging of a wall and still they come together harmoniously. They remind me of a midlifecrises, there is anger, experience and some questionable decisions.

Kimi Pakarinen: L'Énigme d'un après-midi, 2013, öljy kankaalle, 160 x 200 cm

Imagine

Lets pretend, just for one moment, that this is not just a drawing of a square.

Let us pretend that this square is in fact a box and that this box is in fact the world. 

Not just any old world, but the world of thoughts and ideas.

Imagine that this box contains everything you have ever thought of in your lifetime. Everything you have dreamt in passing, on a long train journey from east to west from north to south. Each moment of weakness and enduring pain. The joys and playful undercurrents of conversations you have had.

IMAGINE

That everything in your mind could fit into this box.

Now imagine that this is not a box, but only a drawing of a square.

Exhibition evaluation: curating _ Waiting For The Summer

LONGING FOR THE SUMMER - A Journey into Naivism
2.11.2013 - 2.2.2014
Curated from the Suomen Gallup Foundation collection by Tapani Pennanen
Tampere Art Museum, Puutarhakatu 34, 33101 Tampere

The Longing For The Summer exhibition at Tampere Art Museum is a curated selection, of naivist paintings spanning over two floors of the museum. Foreign artists are presented in the ground floor gallery and Finnish artists on the upper level gallery. Paintings hang low on the walls emphasising a child's perspective, and the exhibition utilizes coloured and textured walls to accentuate exhibits. Highlighted and enlarged titles of selected artworks are placed randomly within the gallery spaces, they create an intriguing environment that inspires closer viewer examination of artworks.
Interestingly, the curator has used varied elements to accessorise, as well as, conceptualise a link to summer: fake grass, colourful rugs, wooden crates and paper lanterns. While ascending to the second level these elements work to an advantage, the viewer feels the softness of grass beneath their feet and sees text playfully framed by paper lanterns, evoking the feel of a summer garden party. Unfortunately these elements become confusing when combined with the exhibited works. It is questionable if these elements enhance the visitor's experience or only focus attention away from the actual exhibition.

Sunday searches

I've been looking at a lot of net art recently and one of the websites I am thoroughly enjoying is http://art.teleportacia.org run by olia lialina, Russian journalist, film critic and one of the pioneering net.art artists. The thing I love about this website is that along with lots of links to artworks and informative written texts, visiting the page is essentially like looking at the night sky. There is a connection between the Web and nature that I can't quite process but find alluring. She also reminds us that there is a distinct difference between the Internet and the Web.
Her artwork  Online Newspapers, édition française are hypnotising and the Le Monde work, makes me think of stories told around campfires.

Online Newspapers, édition française, Le Monde, Olia LIALINA, février 2013

Sentimentality and Politics

I dreamt of a house last night. In fact I dreamt of buying a house within a house where the floor boards were rotten, because the gigantic room had been used as a pool. As I was climbing up a ladder out from the pool to the second level I suddenly remembered that I already owned a house.

I have been known to be a somewhat sentimental soul. I often find myself living in past memories or dreams of the future. I don't even really like reading the daily newspaper, as it blurs with my visions of life, with its unforgiving present tense. I am not ethereal, but enjoy the enthralment of narratives that have been set down to be born again and again. Perhaps, this is the reason I dislike overtly political art that is intent on making its viewer feel slightly nauseated by the present. No, I enjoy the poetry of personal experiences, the rough untamed edges of humanity. All the needed politics will flow from their daily experience in to the art without resorting to the slapstick of a political statement. This doesn't mean that I am partial to overly romanticised paintings with their watery vistas and undulating undercurrents of love unfulfilled. I am, no matter how sentimental, a realist. 

I am excited by ideas, all ideas no matter how “bad” or “good”. Thoughts turn me on, in a way I never could be by the statement of facts or so called current affairs. The random ramblings of the “crazy old man” in the bookshop will usually interest me more than how many people died unnecessarily this week in a war for drugs or oil. I do not in any way wish to present the notion that I don't care about such events. They are just not in my immediate vista most of the time and do not appeal to my sentimentality, or perhaps they do, but so much so, that were I to spend my days pondering famine, war, violence and cruelty I would probably jump off a bridge by next week.

HEHE, 2009, Installation: Aluminium plinth, aquarium, pumps, tubes, tank, electronics, model of a nuclear power station, water and fluoresceine dye, Unique

I am however interested in our environment and its destruction by mankind. This I suppose is political but I think it is also a narrative of humanity. We often destroy that what we love and need most and for me nature is the closest thing to a religion I know. Today I am excited by the artistic duo HEHE (Helen Evans, 1972 and Heiko Hansen, 1970) and their current exhibition Anthroposphere at the Aeroplastics Contemporary in Brussels. Their installations look at the “conflictual rapport between a humanity that is caught up in an unbridled quest for new sources of energy (along with new ways of wasting it)”

HeHe, Prise en charge
2011, socket, smoke

The exhibition is on until March 15th 2014 and should not be missed if you are fortunate enough to be in Brussels. For those of us further afield we can let our imaginations surrender to their work online at http://hehe.aeroplastics.net and look forward to the day a HEHE exhibitions comes our way.

HeHe : Anthroposphere
16.01 – 15.03.14

AEROPLASTICS contemporary
32 rue Blanche
1060
Brussels
Belgium
Europe

Chilled Bossa Nova is playing in the other room, my neighbour is doing a jaunty rendition of the McGyver theme song on his piano and I am searching through LibriVox for some entertaining audio books.

Another sleepy Sunday in our apartment is starting to make me feel restless. Hearty breakfast, many cups of coffee and long showers that cover most of the Andrew Lloyd Webber classics from technicolor dreamcoats to the memoirs of an old kitty, Grizabella. 

 This leads me to wonder why Sarah Brightman has joined the Challenger Centre Advisory Council. How will she inspire space exploration? Well, she is essentially becoming the eighth civilian space tourist according to the Telegraph. For now we have the fact that “In 2012, Sarah announced her intention to launch on a future orbital spaceflight mission to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of a 3-person crew on board a Soyuz rocket.” (1)  Not sure if the whole space thing is a publicity stunt or just a very expensive holiday for the soprano, but it is nice to see she has interests.

For more fun in space I would recommend visiting and downloading NASA's Eyes a 3d environment that contains a whole bunch of real NASA mission data and that lets you explore our solar system. Pretty cool stuff, if you ask me. http://eyes.nasa.gov

Is anyone else reminded of net art when they see the, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat: Any Dream Will Do, video? For some reason it makes my mind jump to the work of net art artist PetraCortright. 

TOUCH

Today I saw one of the most exciting gallery exhibitions I have witnessed in quite some time. Within Reach at Gallery Sculptor is a combination of three interactive installations by Heidi Tikka that incorporate human contact and technology. To really experience the work, you cannot be frightened to interact. The performative nature of the artworks demand viewer participation, which bring up interesting issues about art and people. Most viewers are generally frightened to interact with art, to ask for directions, frightened that they will break a work or that they will interact “incorrectly” with a work. Touch, especially in culture like the one we have here in Finland, is uncomfortable.

At Hand , 2010-2013 by Heidi Tikka

The first installation At Hand , 2010-2013, is a series of window projections that interact in a minimalist way with the viewer. They are projected onto the windows and are also visible to the viewers that happen to be walking by the gallery. This work defines the gallery space, how we move, think, view and play within the space.

The second work is a machine called GSR2 (Galvanic Skin Reaction), 2013. The viewer is given a set of instructions that they must follow by placing their hand on to two copper plates that measure the viewers skin electricity. The GSR2 uses the same technology as lie detectors. The artwork projects a moving image of a hand, depending on the machines reading of the viewer, onto the viewers hand. The projections vary depending on the viewers GSR, sometimes stroking sometimes rubbing. For me this artwork was the most uncomfortable of the pieces. From now on, each time I will touch a touch screen, I will think of the projected hand from this artwork that rubbed small circles at the base of my thumb.

Three Nameless Prototypes, 2013 by Heidi Tikka

The artwork which is probably the easiest to enjoy, once you get over the whole touching in public thing, is called Three Nameless Prototypes, 2013 (Kolme nimetöntä prototyyppiä). It is constructed from three female mannequin torsos in knitted dresses. They hang in a dimly lit space, separate, occupied by these lonely (slightly deformed) figures – All very similar but distinctly different. Viewers are asked to touch each piece, to rub and really feel them up. At first this seems a bit scary. Touching a mannequin in front of others, what does this say about me? Should I put my hand in the hole built near the mannequins groin? Is it ok to touch a mannequins chest? It all feels a bit scary until you give in to it and just let the yourself act like a human. To hug each mannequin, to hear their breath, heartbeat or simply feel the vibration your body's touch has started in the artwork. Suddenly it all feels quite safe and calming.

The artworks in the Within Reach exhibition are an interesting mix of human touch and technology, they ask difficult questions about technology, consumerism, loneliness and most of all touch. This fantastic exhibition is only on for one last day tomorrow the 19^th of January 2014 so if you have a chance go, see and touch.

HEIDI TIKKA
Kosketusetäisyys – Within reach
2.-19.1.2014

Gallery Sculptor

Eteläranta 12, 00130 Helsinki

http://www.sculptors.fi

Procratination

Ok, so we all do this from time to time – Procrastinate. I am doing it right now by writing this blog, instead of writing the essay I really should be concentrating on. So, instead of beating myself up about it, I will give you a list of some of my favourite procrastination pastimes.

1. Wash, scrub and properly clean your bathroom. Yes, really! This excersise in procrastination takes the edge off the guilt you feel, because you really are doing something useful.
2. Write A List. This also works with organising your date book/ schedule. It is a fantastic way to use up excess energy and feel like you are making your life easier. The best way to really reap the benefits of this particular procrastination technique is to add simple things to your list like eat lunch or take out the rubbish, this will allow you to cross things off your list and make you feel like you achieved something today.
3. Turn On The Washing Machine. The idea behind this is that if the washing machine is working, so are you. Therefore feel free to do absolutely nothing and still feel like you have done a good days work.
4. Multitask. When you are multitasking there just isn't time to do what ever it is that you should be doing.
5. Organise. My favourite thing to organise when I am procrastinating is my bookshelf. It becomes a fun creative way to use your time and also kinda makes you feel smart, like the knowledge in those books would seem in to your brain via your skin. Try sorting your books by say colour or the authors political beliefs or by cover design. There is always the normal alphabetical route but that just gets the job done in no time and takes most of the fun out of the whole project.

Ok, so thats me done with one of the things off my list. Now, it is time to get that washing machine working for its rent.

Jack of all trades, master of none?

It is said, that having the ability to concentrate on a single goal is the only way to master a skill properly. But, what happens when you have the ability to concentrate on many different goals for short spurts of time? Do we all have to be masters of a single trade? Would it even be possible to become a master of one trade, if we used the standard 10 000 hours required to achieve mastery? This magical number is often referred to when describing the process of becoming a genius or “master” of a certain trade. For more info on 10,000.

Lets say, that I used one hour everyday on intensive and focused study of my trade. To be able to achieve the 10,000th miracle hour, I would have to keep this up for a total 27,5 years before I mastered my trade. This is assuming that I had never been distracted, ill or taken a holiday. Does anyone else think this sounds ridiculous? I am all for working hard to attain your goals. I truly believe that 90% of finishing anything you set out to do, is hard labour. Does this mean you need to spend 10,000 hours on it? I don't know, but it sure feels like a lot of time.

What is wrong with being a Jack of all trades? 

Why does Jack end up learning so much, but never quite enough for it to be counted as a discernible skill? Is it a question of having little willpower, a bad attention span or an inability to actually understand something wholly? Is it stupidity? Is it simply that Jack is a curious person and loves to find out about new things?

There is so much emphasis being put on excelling at something, that when you are mediocre or just pretty good at lots of things, you are seen as not knowing how to do anything properly. This can easily get very depressing. I myself have found the way down that particular rabbit hole on more than one occasion.

A few months ago my friends and I were talking about skills. We began thinking about what it is we would like and could learn from each other. Everyone had very distinct talents they could teach: web design, grammar, photography, grant writing, photoshop, cooking, drawing, gardening, dancing and the list went on and on. Unfortunately what happened was that not one person could come up with a skill they could learn from me. (Trust me, this is not a good feeling.)

Now being good friends, they tried very hard to find something they could learn from me. They even went so far as to tell me that I was talented. The odd thing was that the things I am “talented” at can't really be taught. They turned out to be personality traits more then actual skills: curious, organised, social, innovative, creative. All nice things to be known for, but how to put them to use. It took me some time to realise that though these are not technically skills, that can be taught to others, they are something that equate to something as good as mastering a specific skill. I am good at creating something out of the proverbial nothing.

Ars gratia artis – except on Monday

Mondays are sleepy in the art world. Museums and galleries are generally closed, exhibitions are being set up or taken down and the invigilators are home having a nap. On Monday it feels like art does not exist. When Tuesday eventually rolls around, suddenly the world is filled with artist talks, lectures and openings. Art people have had their creative viewing goggles cleaned and are able to take on the exhausting work of understanding, empathising and organising. Monday is devoid of empathy just as it is devoid of art.

I started my day today with a quick visit to the police station. I was surprised that there is a separate entrance for gun carrying licences. The gun service entrance also has explicit locking systems. I do not need a gun, so I moved on. The rest of the station was quiet and the system of booking appointments worked well. They were running ten minutes early, which was a nice surprise. I didn't even have time to sit down and read the magazine I had purposely brought along for the wait. This left me with time for an early lunch with my other half.

I also had time to visit GallerySinne in Helsinki. The new exhibition by Jouni Kujansuu is a collection of works from 2013, which consist of installations, photography and sculptures. The exhibition is called Last Cat and feels a bit like a crackpot combination of objects and ideas that still found a flow that pleases both the eye and the soul. Sinne is known for exhibiting exciting and often experimental art by young and emerging artistic talent. Kujansuu's exhibition has utilized the space well, in a way that doesn't overpower or leave room to relax. There is tension and humour in the art and I can already feel it stimulating my little grey cells. 
(On Monday I watch Poirot)

 I heartily recommend having a look in Sinne if you are anywhere near Helsinki. The exhibition runs until February 2^nd 2014 and can be found at Iso Roobertinkatu 16. The only problem, if one must be found with this exhibition, was that the list of works was in two parts, a list and map, which made it annoying to follow, compare and contrast.

Sinne is also an exciting gallery, as it is one of the only galleries in Finland, that does not require an artist to pay a fee to exhibit their work. This may sound like madness to those of you not used to the Finnish art gallery system. Here artists are asked to pay for the privilege of showing their work. Odd that the people who rarely earn enough income through their work are asked to pay to show it. This is not the case everywhere and I feel it is one of the reasons art shown in Finnish galleries are not taken seriously on the international scene.

Most galleries in Finland have a rigorous application process for choosing exhibitions. Most operate on about 17 exhibitions a year and take applications once or twice a year to fill in their exhibition calendar. In central Helsinki the exhibition rent (to be paid by the artist) is about 1000€ for a 3 week show. Prices differ depending on location, size and even the name of the gallery. On top of this the artist is responsible for the printing of posters and invites, the refreshments for the preview and all the actual artworks made and that are transported to the gallery. There are many other expenses, but these are the obvious ones. It is not fair and even though there are grants and funds artists can apply to for help financially it often ends up being the artist themselves paying for the rent.

The Snow is Queen

City people in Finland have a bad reputation when it comes to winter. The first snow is always an excuse to showcase just how surprised the southerners (Helsinkians) are by this yearly marvel of white. I don't actually think this is true.

In a country where snow covers the land for a third of the year, it can hardly be called a surprise when it finally arrives. This year the snow has been late in coming, making the world dark, grey and sleepy. I, for one, have been looking forward to the snow. For the light it brings and the scent of freshly frozen sky.

Last night I watched the new Disney movie “Frozen”, loosely based on the Hans Christian Andersen book Snow Queen.

The movie itself is quite refreshing, although the plot moves so fast it is hard to emphathise with the characters. This could be a script problem or the fact that I am getting old and no longer have the ability to accept spoon fed characterisations. 

There is a lot of good in this movie, but it feels disjointed. The story circles around two sisters Elsa and Ana (princesses), who are estranged after Elsa's gift almost kills her little sister Ana. Their parents die very early on in a ship wreck, after which the gates to their kingdom are shut, until Elsa turns 18 and takes the throne. At the coronation party Elsa and Ana begin to reconnect, but it is short lived.  The sisters fight after Ana wants to get married and Elsa refuses her blessing for the match. She then plunges the whole kingdom into an eternal winter and runs away. Ana goes after her and the story begins in earnest with a talking snowman, a reindeer and, for some reason pungent male lead, Christof. This movie is essentially a love story, but instead of portraying romantic love, the love is sisterly in nature. 

The real hero of this movie is Elsa, the original “evil” character until the writers decided to change her in to a protagonist in the film. Showing a conflicted and confused character in a Disney film is something I applaud! It is therefore unfortunate that as the most compelling character within the movie, she is sidelined almost completely by the eager and overly optimistic little sister Ana, voiced by Kirsten Bell. The song “Let it Go”, sung by Idina Menzel (Elsa) is by far the musical highlight of the movie. It is annoying though, that this coming of age song visually transforms Elsa in to a sexualised, swaying her hips, recluse. 

What are you trying to say Disney? 
The climax is satisfying, with a refreshing twist in plot for Disney. It is only a shame that the rest of the movie was not as well put together.

Exoplanet

Part of my job at the gallery is to talk about art. To listen to the perceptions of viewers and to answer or discuss the artworks with them. I try not to be too critical of their opinions, even when I want to scream, instead I mirror their stances just enough so that they feel I have recognised their artistic views. Their views are valid. I do not have to agree with their assessments to find their words interesting. They are like a critique, a pulse of public opinion on the exhibits. I find it fascinating.

I look at these artworks for about three weeks at a time. I find my own opinions changing as I get better acquainted with the works and the artists. The unfortunate thing is that knowing the artist affects the artworks. There is nothing wrong with knowing the artist, in fact, it is great to meet other creative minds. The downside is that if you like the artist as a person you are more likely to spend time talking yourself in to liking their work. The reverse is also true. Disliking the artist as a person will usually have negative effect on the way you view their art. This is normal, it could even be described as human nature, but the real question is: Is it fair? The answer, in my opinion, is a resounding NO!

As a curator you deal with personalities (artist, architects, exhibition designers, administrators and a whole lot more) on a daily basis. Everyone has their own part to play and as a curator it is your job to put the concept, the ideas, the “instructions” together so that everyone knows how to play. The curator should not let personal feelings interfere with the vision. When it does, usually it is an inconsistency in the standard of the artworks.

In the case of the Famous Artist, it is the personality of the artist that interests the viewers, not the works of art. The infamy of the artist becomes the context for each work they ever create. Their lives become the performance and the artworks the documentation and ephemera left over by their endless artwork, life.

The exhibition lighting my fire today is the upcoming The Winter Anti Depression Show, which will commence on the 18^th of January at Marres House of Contemporary Culture in The Netherlands and finish on March 23^rd. One of the things that excites me is the fact that I may even get a chance to go view it! 

The Winter Anti Depression Show is a group show consisting of artists and designers who were invited by Marres “to create a house that immerses visitors in a variety of sensory experiences creating... a temporary Art Resort.” the artists and designers involved in the exhibition are: Chris Kabel, Katja Gruijters, Ludmila Rodrigues, Kaffe Matthews, FourceLabs, Alessandro Gualtieri, Lisa Pacini and Christine Istad.

 Lisa Pacini and Christine Istad, "Sun," 2012. Installation.

The exhibition does guided tours twice an hour which are able to have a maximum of 8 people on them, so make sure too book in advance. If you are feeling a bit like the “Famous Artist” you can also book individual tours. The information can be found at the Marres website www.marres.org

The most exciting thing about this exhibition is that it is like a trailer for a movie, because

“ The Winter Anti Depression Show is a pilot for a spectacular exhibition about the senses, Here Comes The Sun, which takes place in the former Sphinx factory in Maastricht from 21 Dec 2015 until 22 March 2016.”

Enclosed spaces and zebras

I work in a gallery, literally in a white cube. Sometimes the space feels like a zoo where I am the animal, the changing artworks are viewers and visitors the food. I have no appetite, because the viewers keep changing and interrupting my thoughts. Sometimes they tell me they are better animals and I believe them. They, you see, are not stuck in the cage, They are only visiting.

Being an invigilator can be mind numbing work. It is well suited for thinkers, not so good for those who stew on singular problems. Usually I enjoy the monotonous parts of my job, they relax me. When I worked as a life model I enjoyed staying perfectly still. To hear the steady scratches on heavy paper, the intense concentration and silence that I held by being still. Like having the power to stop time.

As I walk home from work I sometimes notice that I am viewing the world only through my peripheral vision. Is this why animals raised in a zoos rarely do as well in the wild? Do the bars of their cages create a pattern of viewing, sectioning their vision? When the animals have been turned out in to the wild away from these constraints to their vision, are they unable to focus on singulars their vision becoming a singularity of motion that is best detected through the peripheral vision. Are they in essence blind to what is in front of them?

Contrasts are startling. I realised that crossings for pedestrians in Helsinki use exactly the same amount of white as of the dark colours. The space is never negative but balanced, still playing with my optics. Helsinki has a lot of cobblestone streets, the crossings are made in patterns with the cobblestones. They are different to the general design of the cobblestone streets as well as in their colour. This kind of crossing is continental in design. It doesn't surprise me.

Bharti Kher, “Misdemeanors,”
巴尔提·卡尔，《轻罪》

What does surprise me is that after this obstacle course of running thoughts I have found what I was unwittingly searching for in an art e-mail list I belong to called randian-online.com. They are featuring an artist called Bharti Kher, and her current exhibition at the Rockbund Art Museum in Shanghai called Misdemeanors. 

The preview is tonight and the show will run from Jan 11, 2014 – Mar 30, 2014. The exhibition is curated by Sandhini Poddar “a Mumbai-based art historian and Adjunct Curator at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, working on special projects in New York and Abu Dhabi.”

I am struck by Kher's work, it is not the first time I have viewed it. The first time was at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Arts in Gateshead, in 2008 when I still lived in Northern England. I can't recall the work I saw and did not recognise her name. I do, however, feel an affinity a magnetism towards her art – her search of identity.