Galleria Välivuosi, Helsinki
6.–16.9.2007
I wanted to study the idea of a mystery, something that is unknown to us. People tend to believe they are capable of communicating with the parts of the universe that remain out of their reach — may it be the subconscious, unseen forces of nature or God.
My plan was to set up an installation with a mystic, almost religious atmosphere. I also wanted to include a daily ritual, a bodily practice that would raise the ideas of communicating with the unknown
The exhibition was built in Galleria Välivuosi, a small space with two floors: one on the street level and one underground. Upstairs I placed a text installation with two texts written by me and poet Harry Salmenniemi. The two texts were to be read as a prayer and a religious icon. The prayer appeared as a minimalist monument with only three capitalized words, ”FORGET YOURSELF BECAUSE”, while the icon was much more fragmented and unfocused as a very intime subjective monologue where the subject asks for courage to approach something uncomprehendable or unnameble.
The purpose of the texts were to slow down the viewer and prepare him or her to enter the second room downstairs. There I had placed a sound installation with a dimly lit sculpture, a black iron cube that held a computer-run sound system inside. By using an open-source audio programming language, I had written a generative music software that played music based on random numbers and medieval tonal scales. The music was a mixture of chaos and strict mathematical rules.
The basement floor was almost completely dark: only one dimmed spotlight lit the black cube casting a massive shadow on the wall, that got visible only after few minutes when the eyes had adjusted to the darkness. This made many visitors believe the light was added constantly after they entered the room.
Every day an hour before the gallery closed, a musical performance took place. I had asked young experimental and jazz musicians to improvise with my generative music installation. Artists such as Islaja, Kalevi Louhivuori and Olavi Louhivuori performed with the installation.
The performers were:
6.9. Olavi Louhivuori (percussions)
7.9. Kalevi Louhivuori (trumpet)
8.9. Tuukka Tervo (guitar)
9.9. Eino Santanen, Sanna Karlström (poetry)
10.9. Jaakko Eino Kalevi
11.9. Visa Tapani (electronics)
12.9. Islaja
13.9. Anna-Maija Laitinen (vocal)
14.9. Pasi Toivanen & Eeti Nieminen (bass, drums)
15.9. Jarkko Räsänen (bass)
16.9. The Black Box Funeral Orchestra
The basement floor was almost completely dark: only one dimmed spotlight lit the black cube casting a massive shadow on the wall, that got visible only after few minutes when the eyes had adjusted to the darkness. This made many visitors believe the light was added constantly after they entered the room.
The prayer appeared as a minimalist monument with only three capitalized words, ”FORGET YOURSELF BECAUSE”, while the icon was much more fragmented and unfocused as a very intime subjective monologue where the subject asks for courage to approach something uncomprehendable or unnameble.
The invitation card.
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