BY THE RIVER – FINNISH PHOTOGRAPHY NOW

PRESS RELEASE

“But the audience must also be provoked; it must be challenged to seek more than before. Let them not think they understand images at a glance. Photography is an art of infinitely subtle expression, measured on a kaleidoscopic scale. Right now, that scale might weigh the photography of Gallén or Edelfelt—or especially Schjerfbeck.”
– Ismo Kajander

A year ago, the Pori Art Museum presented the exhibition “By the River: New Finnish Art.” Now, the series continues with a focus on photography as part of contemporary visual art.

The aim of this exhibition is to showcase the developments in Finnish photography in the early 1980s. Photography has found a new, liberated, and multifaceted expression, with thinking in the field undergoing significant renewal. Today’s photography often originates from deeply personal and individual perspectives. Color photography has gained prominence, and various experiments with multimedia presentations have emerged. Even photojournalism is undergoing transformation.

The museum has invited ten photographers to participate in the exhibition: Mauritz Antin, Stefan Bremer, Ulla Jokisalo, Timo Kelaranta, Kimmo Koskela, Kuutti Lavonen, Sari Poijärvi, Pentti Sammallahti, Jukka Uotila, and Tapio Vanhatalo. Each artist has curated their own selection of works, resulting in a diverse collection ranging from abstract and conceptual photography to the powerful expressionism of the present day.

In the exhibition booklet, Ismo Kajander provides an intriguing historical perspective on why it is only now—30 years behind other forms of art—that photography is being seriously recognized as a medium of artistic expression.

Publication:
ISBN 951-9355-05-7 Varrella Virran Valokuva Tänään
Porin taidemuseo 17.5.-10.6.1984
Editing, lay-out: Hilkka Kuusijärvi
Cover: Kuutti Lavonen
Translations: Martin Easterbrook. Ritva Päivömaa
14 color and 22 black-and-white photos
Satakunnan Kirjateollisuus Oy, Pori 1984

Translated with ChatGPT