Dreams and Disappointments I. The large sized photographs shows images of private swimming pools unused for a very long time. Some of them are in a desolate condition. These photographic reminiscences speak of hope - of bringing southern flair into the north.
Dreams and Disappointments I
"Finland. Four seasons, many reasons”: These words greet the expectant
traveller at the Helsinki airport. And indeed, Jyrki Parantainen’s new
solo-exhibition at Herrmann & Wagner seems to verify the clichés about this
nordic country: melancholy, landscapes, cool scenarios of social housing
resembling the world of Kaurismäki, and faces speaking of lost hopes.
It is implied by the title of the exhibition: It’s all about dreams, hopes
and disappointments, as well as about unspoken expectations. The large
sized photographs shows images of private swimming pools unused for a very
long time. Some of them are in a desolate condition. These photographic
reminiscences speak of hope – of bringing southern flair into the north. But
they are also evidence of a past belief in technical possibilities that no
one shares today.
Seen as a sequel to the series “orientation”, these works illustrate the
current state of photography. Once again Parantainen questions reality in
photography through these “photographed photographs”. The artist’s
intervention in those “reproduced reproductions” consist of the addition of
words or lines to the picture. A new, deeper level of interpretation is
revealed, the imaginary disclosed. Using analogue technology, Parantainen
reveals what is no longer obvious in digital photography: the interpretation
– that is the orientation – is in the hands of the observer.
Since autumn 2006, Jyrki Parantainen has been working as a professor for
photography at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki, where he is
responsible for the education of new talents within the “Helsinki School”.
We will continue the subject “Dreams and Disappointments” in September with
sculptures by the Finnish sculptor Kim Simonsson and the Swedish photograher
Helena Blomqvist.
Opening with the artist : Friday 02.03.2007, 19.00 h
Introduction Dr. Nils Ohlsen, Kunsthalle in Emden
Herrmann & Wagner
Koppenplatz 6 - Berlin