Heavy Northern Light | 4 FINN PRINTMAKERS

An exhibition tour of 4 Finn graphic artists.
The idea for this exhibition, that opens in Chili Art Gallery on September 13th, was born in Essen, where Pirjo Heino had a presentation in art symposium and the other participants like Januzs Cywicki, Ralf Klement and Christine Steuernagel got interested in Finnish graphic art. So, Heino collected four professional printmakers from her town Hämeenlinna in 2011. Later on one of them moved to Kokkola and the other to Helsinki but they still are in the group. The artists met and processed with the idea, they came together many times and kept contact by e-mails. In the end the exhibition got the title: “Heavy Northern Light”.
The initial connection with the group of four Finnish artists, who exhibit their work here in Athens, in Chili Art Gallery, as the fourth station of this removable show around Europe, was the call they have made to 4 Greek artists to exhibit for three weeks in the Gallery in main library of the city of Hameenlinna, Finland, where the four graphic artists come from. Indeed, the group exhibition titled NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC (Stavros Kotsireas, Anna Mihailidou, Mary Roussioti, Nantia Skordopoulou and Yannis Skoulas) was inaugurated on May 13, lasted until 4 June 2013 and was very successful. (https://www.jennytsoumpri.com/httpdocs/en/be_side_2013.htm)

Works of following four Finn graphic artists will be displayed in exhibition:

Pirjo Heino, Hämeenlinna, (1954) is a printmaker and curator. Her works represent the life and it’s surprises in a form of capricious garden. She reduces her works on the narrow border between private and collective experience. In her new art works she uses her own experimental prints in collages on canvas.

Mirka Johansson, Kokkola (1973) is a graphic artist and art pedagogy, using metal plates. In a main role of her art is the woman. Her pictures are from the dream world of the woman who is eyes wide shut, so, that she could feel and see as well as possible. It’s good to look them and slow down so that your soul catches your body and gives you good feeling.

Juha Laurikainen, Hämeenlinna, (1955) studies the conventional and unconventional roles and meanings of pictures and images in both art and design, researching also the boundaries between these two fields. Drawing and repetitions of drawings by screen printing are my special interests. He also teaches art and designing.

Jouko Pullinen, Hämeenlinna, (1959) tests the opportunities of metal graphic and block printing in his art works and builds collages with different materials. His art works based on observations from nature but through the conceptual process and methodological experiments, they get a multi meaning outlook.

The opening of the exhibition will take place on Friday 13 September 2013, 20.00 and will last until 5 October 2013.

Curators Pirjo Heino and Jenny Tsoumpri.