Missäs Päin Karttaa/ Where on the map
Endless bogs and desolate wilderness have long been part of the image of Norrbotten, and Tornedalen specifically. A culturally underdeveloped area from the outside, but 98,245 square kilometers, multiple languages, national minorities, and indigenous peoples in dialogue insist otherwise—from within. The sweet intertwines with the salty, in a norm-creative representation of place, environment, heritage, and the art of preserving with the expression of storytelling. The theme of the exhibition revolves around universal human concerns about place, sustainability, and heritage. The idea aims to explore the relativity and significance of place in time and space, for language and people, center, periphery, identity, minority, and majority, together with the artists. Where on the map, with an emphasis on where, relates to questions of direction and movement. Actual places, but also places that cannot be Googled, places that can be felt, cultural mapping, rural areas, and belonging regardless of location on Earth.
The curator has based the selection and presentation on a personal perspective and reflections on what it means to be a Meänkieli-speaking Tornedalian, belonging to the minority group of Tornedalians, Kvens, and Lantalaiset, and the impact of the place regarding visibility, value, and perceptions of periphery and center. The exhibition highlights the cross-border Tornedalian experience through the works of several artists, all with unique relationships to the questions of identity, place, history, and culture. It aims to convey art and create opportunities for artistic exchanges with interdisciplinary elements rooted in social anthropology, physical environment, and biological diversity. The participating artists express the theme in various forms through weaving, film, photography, visual art, sculpture, and literature. Tornedalians, Kvens, and Lantalaiset are referred to as the invisible minority in Sweden. A Tornedalian, Lantalainen, or Kven is someone who feels a sense of belonging to Tornedalen and Meänkieli, as well as the culture and history of the original language area. There are Tornedalians, Lantalaiset, and Kvens throughout the country. The exhibition raises questions about the relationship to a representation of somewhere with answers in a portrayal of something, thereby highlighting the cross-border Tornedalian or Tornedalian-related experience through the works of the exhibition.
The participating artists are eight individuals with different experiences and relationships to the theme of place and identity. Mikael Dysholm is a visual artist who, through the work "The Journey," raises the question, "Where do I come from and where am I going?" Collage and figurative forms are recurring elements in his expression. JohdetxPirak’s conceptual work captures the river and the significance of the place in relation to different places and cultures, while sculptor Essi Korva’s tree sculpture continues to explore the significance of water and, therefore, the river and tree materials for life. Kenneth Mikko's collages with still images tell the history of Norrbotten and the divide between city and countryside through the industrialization’s closure of agriculture in the north. Visual and textile artist Ragnhild Margretha Mietinen Krüger’s vibrant expression explores her Kven heritage and mourns the loss of language, which she is working to reclaim, a traditional craft in decline. Through the work "Language–Shame–Laughter," artist Lena Ylipää explores her lost mother tongue and the emotions surrounding that loss while making the place visible and giving voice to an insider perspective from northern Tornedalen. Ida Isak Westerberg’s interaction with the bog colors the woven works that highlight borderlands and growth processes with the help of the bog Sompasenvuoma.
Text: Linnea Huhta
When:
från fredag 11 oktober
till lördag 23 november
Where:
Organizer
ÖSKG/Tjörnedala konsthall
tel: + 46 (0)414 260 80
Epost: info@oskg.se
ÖSKG/Tjörnedala konsthall
Tjörnedalavägen 40
272 94 Baskemölla
Opening hours
Opening Hours
Thursday-Sunday 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM