Banksy in Malaga

At the moment there's a really interesting art exhibition in Malaga - The Art Of Protest by street & graffiti artist Banksy. There are more than 40 of his works in this exhibition. Banksy is that artist that hasn't revealed his identity. What is known about this mystery artist is that he is British and born in the 70s. Most of us remember him from last autumn when his art work was sold in the Sotheby's for £1,04 and just after it was sold the picture went trough a shredder which was hidden within the frame.

In this exhibition it is great that they have introduced the techniques that Banksy uses such as the tenciling technique. Every piece of his works is carefully planned and done. In all of Banksy's works there's always a message and black humour. They are pretty impressive and touching as well.

In La Termica the exhibitions takes up 3 different rooms. In the first room the audience will take a sneak peek to his graffitis around the world. In his home country Banksy is wanted as spraying graffiti in public places is a criminal act in the UK. The exhibition includes iconic series such as the portraits of Kate Moss in the style of Warhol's Marilyn, the bulldog and a serigraph of teh series Girl with Balloon.

If you are in Malaga, I can highly recommend The Art of Protest by Banksy in the cultural centre La Termica, to the west of the city. The exhibition is on until September 15th.

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Banksy Malagassa

Nyt on Malagassa menossa mielenkiintoinen taidenäyttely - katu- ja graffititaileilija Banksyn yli 40 teoksesta koostuva The Art of Protest -näyttely. Banksy on se taiteilija josta kukaan ei oikein tiedä mitään. Se sentään tiedetään, että hän on britti ja syntynyt 70-luvulla. Banksy tuli tunnetuksi viime syksynä itsestääntuhoavasta taideteoksesta, josta maksettiin 1,04 miljoonaa puntaa huutokaupassa ja joka tuhosi itsentä silppurissa heti kaupan jälkeen.

Näyttelyssä tuotiin hyvin esille Banksyn sabluunatekniikka ja mielestäni myös se kuinka tarkkaan teokset on suunniteltu ja valmisteltu. Ne eivät ole vain merkityksettömiä huitaisuja vaan jokaisessa teoksessa ja graffitissa on sanoma - yleensä huumorilla sävytetty ja kantaaottava oivallus.  Teokset ovat kaikessa yksinkertaisuudessaan hyvinkin vaikuttavia ja tunteita nostattavia.

La Termicassa teokset on järjestetty 3 saliin. Heti ensimmäisessä on videomuodossa hyvä läpikatsaus Banksyn eri puolilla maailmaa spreijaamiin graffiteihin. Banksyhän on kotimaassaan Iso-Britanniassa etsintäkuulutettu, sillä graffiteiden maalaaminen julkisille paikoille on siellä rikos.

Esillä on mm. Kate Mossin muotikuvat, jotka on tehty Andy Warholin tyyliin, Tyttö ja ilmapallo sekä  Buldogit.

Viime viikolla avautuneeseen näyttelyyn The Art of Protest voi tutustua La Termicassa Malagan länsiosassa syyskuun 15. päivään asti.

Suosittelen!

Budapest Photo Festival

Once again it was a great chance to see inspirational photos in Budapest as last weekend there was 'Foto utca fesztivál' - Photo Street Festival - in the front of Capa Center.

A part of the street was totally closed from cars and several containers were brought there. They were like mini pop up galleries. What a fantastic idea!

The exhibition was part of Budapest Photo Festival.

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Budapestissa oli jälleen kerran mahdolisuus nähdä upeita, inspiroivia valokuvia, sillä käynnissä oli 'Foto utca fesztivál' - valokuva-katufestarit - Capa Centerin edessä.

Osa kadusta oli kokonaan suljettu autoilta ja sinne oli tuotu kontteja, jotka toimivat mini-pop-up gallerioina. Aivan loistava idea!

Näyttely oli osa Budapestin valokuvafestivaalia.

You can still go & see these exhibitions in Budapest:

// Vielä ehdit käydä katsastamassa nämä valokuvanäyttelyt Budapestissa:

Resistance

Scapes

Instax

Resistance Exhibition At ToBe Gallery

If you are in town (that means in Budapest) pop in to ToBe Gallery to see Resistance - Power Or Capacity To Resist photo exhibition. 

All the displayed photos have strong message and statement by the Venezualan artists who had to leave their home country after the conflicts on April 11th in 2002. This is a very impressive & emotional exhibition. It's not political - it just shows how these artists saw, felt and experienced "11A".

Have to bring you some bad news - Bea & Tomas are closing down the gallery so this is the last exhibition at ToBe. But the good news are that they are not leaving Budapest (they just spent 3 months in Miami!) and they have great new plans, so we will hear from them soon!

(FI) Jos satut olemaan Budapestissa, kannattaa pistäytyä ToBe Galleriassa katsastamassa Resistance - Power Or Capacity To Resist -valokuvanäyttely. 

Kaikissa näytteillä olevista valokuvista tulee selkeästi esille niiden vahva sanoma ja viesti. Kyseessä on venezualaisten taitelijoiden ryhmänäyttely.  Nämä taiteilijat joutuivat jättämään kotimaansa vuoden 2002 (11.4.2002) tapahtumien jälkeen. Näyttely on vaikuttava ja tunteita liikuttava. Se on taiteilijoiden oma näkemys siitä miten he kokivat "11A:n" eli huhtikuun 11. päivän tapahtumat.

Valitettavasti Bea & Tomas ovat sulkemassa gallerian, joten tämä näyttely jää ToBen viimeiseksi. Hyvä uutinen on se, että heillä on uusia loistavia suunnitelmia eivätkä he ole lähdössä Budapestista (he olivat juuri Miamissa 3 kk!), joten tulemme varmasti kuulemaan heistä pikapuoliin!

Instax - Photo Exhibition

Earlier this week I popped in to an opening of a photo exhibition at Erika Deák Gallery in Budapest. "Instax" is a group exhibition within the Budapest Photo Festival. Fuji Instax Wide 300 camera was given to 7 artists to experiment  moments and create their own vision. 

Polaroid technique is somewhere between analogue and digital image making. All these photos are without any manipulation of reality. They are moments. 

I like the photos and the way they are displayed - very artistic, interesting and inspiring. 

Absolutely worth visiting if you happen to be in Budapest in April. 

(FI) Aikaisemmin tällä viikolla piipahdin valokuvanäyttelyn avajaisissa Erika Deák Galleriassa Budapestissa. Instax-ryhmänäyttely on osa Budapest Photo Festivalin ohjelmistoa. Seitsemälle taiteilijalle annettiin Fuji Instax wide 300 kamera ja pyydettiin tallentamaan hetkiä ja luomaan jotain oman näköistä.

Polaroid-tekniikka on jossain analogisen ja digitaalisen kuvan tekemisen välimaastossa. Näissä kuvissa ei ole manipuloitu todellisuutta, toisin kuin monissa somessa vilisevissä kuvissa.

Kuvat ovat mielenkiintoisia, taiteellisia ja inspiroivia, samoin niiden esittelytapa.

Kannattaa ehdottomasti pistäytyä jos olet Budapestissa tässä kuussa.

The seven artists of Instax // Instax-näyttelyn 7 taiteilijaa ovat

Miklós Déri

Máté Dobokay

Sári Ember

Andrea Gáldi Vinkó

Péter Puklus

Péter Rákosi

Mónika Sziládi

Independence Through The Lenses by Finnish Photographers

On Monday there was an opening night of a photo exhibition called "Independence through the lenses" in Robert Capa Center. The exhibition is part of a programme on the centenary of Finland's independence in 2017. 

In this exhibition in Budapest there are shown works by seven Finnish photographers. They are all telling by their photos something about Finland. Basically all the good things were left aside and the artists want to show that it might not be the jackpot to live in Finland - as we were told in my childhood.

The experience of independence, cultural traditions and memories shape the ways of seeing and looking at ourshelves and at others. I believe in the freedom of speech. Especially in art everyone should be able to express themselves and tell their own story. Not everything needs to be pretty & light - even though I prefer to look at beautiful yet interesting things in art.

There are many fantastic shots and all the photos are technically gorgeous. I also like a lot the idea how the pics are framed and what materials are used on prints. Even those square ones printed on a rather thin paper and hung with pins look so great.

As a Finn I just didn't feel related to these photos. Many of them are too made up and I felt that they are lacking some sort of humanity. 

If you go & see this exhibition, it would be great to hear what was your feeling about it!

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(FI) Maanantai-iltana Budapestissa oli Robert Capa Centerissä valokuvanäyttelyn avajaiset, jossa esillä oli 7 suomalaisen valokuvaajan tuotantoa aiheesta itsenäinen Suomi 100 vuotta.

Kukin taiteilija kertoo kuvillaan omia kokemuksiaan maamme itsenäisyydestä. Nyt ei keskitytä siihen kuinka loistava maa Suomi on vaan näytetään se toinen puoli Suomesta. 

Sananvapaus on totta kai tärkeää myös taiteessa. Arvostan kantaaottavaa ja kapinoivaa taidetta - ei kaiken tarvitse olla niin nättiä, vaikka pidänkin taiteesta jota on miellyttävä katsella.

Näyttelyssä on monia aivan fantastisia kuvia ja kaikki kuvat ovat tekniseltä tasoltaan ihan huippua. Tykkäsin kovin myös siitä miten kuvat oli laitettu esille. Erilaiset kehykset, kuvien koot ja materiaalit tukivat hyvin kuvia ja lisäsivär niiden mielenkiintoa.

Näin suomalaisena en kuitenkaan tuntenut yhteyttä kuvien sanomaan. Jotkut kuvista oli liian tehtyjä ja aseteltuja. Jäin kaipaamaan niissä jonkinlaista inhimillisyyttä.

Jos käyt katsomassa tämän näyttelyn, olisi kiva kuulla mitä mieltä olit!

Nordic Fashion Illustration

(EN) If you are in Budapest you have still a couple of days time to check out this great exhibition of Nordic Fashion Illustration. There're works of Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian & Estonian artists. All the works are very different.

"The illustrations, inpired by history, the contemporary world and lifestyle, are proficient in most of the various drawing and painting techniques, and in addition possess the skills of assemblage and the latest digital techniques. The unlimited range of subkjescts in their work combine realistic human propartions and ideals, geometry and the surreal, nature and mythology, poetry and the mundane, photography and free-hand drawing."

(FI) Jos satut olemaan Budapestissa juuri nyt, sinulla on vielä pari päivää aikaa käydä katsastamassa pohjoismaista muotikuvitusta käsittelevä näyttely Nordic Fashion Illustration. Näyttelyssä on esillä töitä tanskalaisilta, suomalaisilta, ruotsalaisilta, norjalaisilta ja virolaisilta taiteilijoilta. Kaikki työs ovat hyvin erilaisia.

"Historiasta, nykymaailmanmenosta ja -elämäntavasta inspiroituneet kuvittajat ovat taitavia käyttämään eri piirustus- ja maalaustekniikoita sekä kollaasi- ja  digitekniikkaa. Mitään aihealuetta ei ole rajattu pois. Töissä on yhdistelty inhimillistä, todellista ja ihanteellista, geometriaa ja surrealismia, luonnollisuutta ja mytologiaa, runoutta ja arkipäiväisyyttä, valokuvausta ja vapaalla kädellä piirtämistä."  

Nordic Fashion Illustration exhibition is open until October 20th and takes place at // näyttely on avoinna lokakuun 20. päivään asti ja sijaitsee 

Erőművház (VII, Wesselényi utca 17)

Free admission // Ilmainen sisäänpääsy

Art Corner: Serendipia By Carolina Chocron

There was "Pozsonyi Piknik" day in the XIII district in Budapest last Sunday. Lots of small shops were open and there were plenty of stalls and stands where local products were introduced. Nearby Poszonyi utca (street) there's a small place called ToBe Gallery. I decided to pop in as there's going on very interesting exhibition called "Serendipia" by Carolina Chocron. She's an illustrator and collage artist from Buenos Aires.

Carolina Chocron makes such gorgeous collages. they are very detailed, delicate and inspirational. 

The one below was my favourite! 

To find beauty and value where you would not expect: Serendipia is all about this feeling transmitted by the works of Argentinian Carolina Chocron, collagist. A subconscious game in which tangible becomes abstract and known turns into unknown. Pictures, papers, tiny objects give up their original places, meanings, and functions and so something new can come to life by their combinations.

The biggest wonders might be found in the simplest things sometimes; think about a piece of paper, anything can be created from it that the artist dreams of. Textures, patterns, forms, colours and contours meet; every cut is an emotion, with patching the tiny details a new wonder is born. Paper is the material and through its shaping, thoughts and new ideas materialise while gaining new meanings and forming an intimate, personal discourse with their spectator. Carolina Chocron is inspired by discovery and challenge; her aim is the spectators to become one with the artwork and indulge themselves in impressions.

The artist finds unique pleasure in her work: it is not only about expressing herself; for her, creating is the one and only form of existence in which she feels utterly happy. Throughout making a collage, single elements look for each other, they meet, create symbiosis or fall apart. By the end of the process, they are completely transformed and gain a new meaning. Therefore, making a collage is the perfect metaphor of human existence, no wonder that technique means life for Carolina: looking back at the past, building up the present, smuggling humour, fantasia, and intellect into everyday life.

What message do these collages send us? They invite us to travel, tell us stories, and pass on secret messages to the receptive spectators. They help us discover the details and get ourselves lost in them while we slowly decipher the final message. Collage is a constant “finding”, a game in which all elements have their own roles and limits; in which paper is a toy and the artist is the puppet master. And so Carolina Chocron invites the audience for a very special game.

© Alexandra Fejes 2016

Photo Exhibitions in Budapest & Helsinki

Whether you are in Budapest or in Helsinki right now, there is an interesting photo exhibition in both cities. 

In Budapest you can see a joint exhibition of three Hungarian artist Anikó Robits, Réka Bohus and Ágnes Eperjesi. Look like paintings but they are very detailed photos. Beautiful compositions! The exhibition takes place in TOBE Gallery. It's a small gallery owned by Bea Puskás and Tomas Opitz at Herzen utca 6 in XIII district in Budapest. 

I got totally fascinated by the 2 photos with extreme closed-up Bauhaus details taken in Berlin by Aniko Robitz.  

The Triangle exhibition is open until July 6.

Worth visiting!

In Helsinki there's an exhibition called "Kymmenen valoa" (= ten lights) by a group called Ryhmä 10. Interesting photos by 10 different photographers in Kamera Gallery. The place is in the premises of Kameraseura at Lastenkodinkuja 1 in a short walking distance from the very centre of the city.

"Circles of life" by Johanna Friskberg got my attention immediately. It's a beautifully displayed collage of black and white photos all with something round in them. A round form represents continuity, eye follows it continuously.

The exhibition is on until June 22,so hurry up! 

Sony World Photography Awards

If you're in London, you might still have a couple of hours to go and see this amazing photo exhibition at Somerset House on Strand. Sony World Photography Awards Exhibitons has been on 24th April-10th May 2015. 

There're several different categories such as Professional Competition, Open Competition, L'Iris d'Or, Student Focus, Youth Award, National Award and Sony's Global Imaging Ambassadors. 

The topics're:

Architecture

Arts & Culture

Enhanced

Low Light

Nature & Wildlife

Panoramic

People

Smile

Split Second

Travel 

Here're some of the pics that caught my attention. 

(Hungarian ladies having a smoking break)

(by a Finnish photographer)

(by a Hungarian photographer)

(Budapest HEV)

(Swedish dads)

A couple of years ago this courtyard looked like this!

Cute Animal Figures At Gallery Angelo

If you happen to be in Pori during Pori Jazz Festivals, don't miss the art exhibition at Gallery Angelo.

There's a graphic exhibition with a printmaking studio, where Marko Lampisuo shows between noon to 3pm how the prints are actually made with traditional methods. Very interesting! 

I fell in love with Kaisu Koivisto's animal figures! I found (and still do) them so cute & touching that couldn't help dropping a couple of tears. That's what art is all about - it has the power to touch people.

 Inari Krohn: Suuri metsä

Himmelblau Printmaking Studio

 Elina Luukanen: Myöhäinen hetki & Portaikko

Other works on display by artists Outi Heiskanen, Marko Lampisuo, Ari Pelkonen, Esa Riippa, Marika Mäkelä, Kirsi Neuvonen, Tiina Kivinen, Janne Laine, Jaakko Mattila, Miina Äkkijyrkkä, Jani Leinonen. 

Galleria Angelo

Yrjönkatu 3

Pori