Juha Suonpää Made Research on Finnish Photo Art

Science journalist Kalle Heiska has published a report about the research project Dr. Juha Suonpää made on Finnish photo art. Juha Suonpää is the Head of TAMK Fine Arts Degree Programme.

"Many Finnish photographers with international success have achieved fame in Finland “via foreign countries”. Likewise Finnish photographic art has begun to be increasingly defined through internationalization. Nevertheless photographic art has mostly imparted a traditional image of Finnishness."

The research was carried out during the period 2005-2008 as part of the research and development work of TAMK University of Applied Sciences. Suonpää’s research formed part of the Finnish Museum of Photography project Pohjan Tähdet (Stars of the North) examining the internationalisation of Finnish photographic and video art. The project was funded mainly by the Academy of Finland.

Read the article by Kalle Heiska

Photo: Fine Art Students Elise Mäkitalo (left) and Liina Mäki-Patola (right) contemplating the various alternatives for attaching significance to pictures with Juha Suonpää.
Photographer: Antti Haapio

TTVO Special Screening at Tampere Film Festival

There is a special screening of new TTVO short films at Tampere Film Festival Thursday March 5 12 am in Hällä. TTVO is the Finnish abbreviation for TAMK School of Art and Media.

The films are:

THE BUSKER, Fiction // 3 min, Director: Joonas Selin
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES Experimental // 3 min, Director: Henna Inkinen
THE ELECTRICIAN, Fiction // 14 min, Director: Miina Alajärvi
LOST AND FOUND, Fiction // 4 min, Director: Kaisa Tomperi
WHOLE, Experimental // 3 min, Director: Sanni Rajapolvi
RAIN MUST FALL, Fiction // 19 min, Director: Anna-Kaisa ”Niisku” Haapala
SPEAKEASY! -MUSICAL, Fiction // 19 min, Director: Juha Kuoppala
WAITING, Fiction // 6 min, Director: Outi Ylä-Outinen
DECISION, Fiction // 5 min, Director: Emmi-Sofia Markkanen
FAT RAT JACKET, Fiction // 14 min, Director: Hanna Hurri
WHIPPED CREAM WITH STRAWBERRIES, Fiction // 3 min Director: Aleksi Närvä

You can find descriptions of the films and details about the crews at the Tampere Film Festival webpage for the TTVO screening

TTVO screening

Some of the films also have websites and/or trailers online:

Suicidal Tendencies
Rain Must Fall
Speakeasy!
Fat Rat Jacket
The Electrician
The Busker

Tampere Film Festival March 4-8

Photo from Rain Must Fall

Hint: You can also see most of these films at Tampere Art Factory May 15-16

Media Programme: 182 Applications

The application period for international degree programmes in Finnish universities of applied sciences ended a week ago. The new Media Programme at TAMK School of Art and Media received 182 applications as primary study place, 102 of them from outside Finland. The total number of applications the Media Programme received was 585.

The Media Programme will choose 20 applicants to start their studies in August. The required pre-task was sent by deadline by 86 applicants. The pre-tasks are now evaluated by the lecturers. All applicants whose pre-tasks qualify, will be invited to the entrance test April 21st.

Photo: Last week students and staff members of the School of Art and Media gathered in the school café to discuss questions raised by the students. Topics included cancelled lessons, project practices, the contents of some courses etc. Both the staff members and the students got a bunch of good ideas how to perform better. Next open meeting will be arranged during this spring.

Coming this spring: HERA by Sanni Rajapolvi

HERA is a joint production of both the fine art and the media students of the School of Art and Media. It started as an experimental exercise last spring, but grew up to be the graduation project of Sanni Rajapolvi.

HERA is a contemporary film about identity and motherhood.

This modern work portrays the thoughts of a young woman, who struggles with her self, seeking her identity. The battle of mind is presented trough a surrealistic fight with her double where the line between reflection and actual dissolves. The young and insecure mind is fluid.

HERA is a dream about seeking the right choice.

Sanni Rajapolvi, writer and director of HERA, is a becoming Contemporary artist. Her work includes modern motion picture and installation. HERA is her graduation work from Tampere University of Applied Sciences Fine Arts Programme.

HERA (Website and trailer)
HERA at Facebook

You can enjoy HERA at Tampere Art Factory festival May 15-16

Our Art Exhibition in Miskolc

Karton Szalon Gallery in Miscolc, the Hungarian twin city of the City of Tampere, shows an art exhibition of young artists from Tampere. All the artists are TAMK Fine Art Programme graduates from last year or still students of the programme.

The exhibition is arranged by the City of Tampere Culture Department in cooperation with the City of Miskolc and the Miskolc Art Museum. The local press and television notized the opening of the exhibition. It is open February 2 - March 1.

The artists of the exhibition are:

Hannamari Matikainen, photographs
Kaija Papu, photographs
Sanni Seppä, paintings
Jere Seppänen, installation
Samppa Törmälehto, installation
Jarno Vesala, installation

Videoworks:
Risto-Pekka Blom
Henna Inkinen
Kaija Papu
Sanni Rajapolvi

There is also a TAMK School of Art and Media corner screening a collection of fine art student's video works.

Story: Minna Suoniemi

Space Quest by our Fine Art Students in New York

Pekka Ruuska and Teemu Räsänen - fourth year students of our Fine Arts Programme - made a successful exhibition in Syracuse, New York. They were joined by Inga Mustakallio who graduated last year and works today in Geneva.

The 12 hour exhibition included performances, a workshop in erotic art, community art, drawings and paintings. The local audience seemed to be very interested in Finnish art and artists.

Pekka Ruuska commented: Even though we live an era of globalization, there's still big cultural differences between Europe and the U.S. The different cultural backgrounds generate art forms that stand out from the customary art around us. This brought the audience to experience something they did not expect coming to the exhibition.

Video from the exhibition at Post Standard

Two School of Art And Media Films Compete in Tampere Film Festival

A week ago I posted the story about Toni Edo, the former Interactive Media Programme student, been invited to Tampere Film Festival international competition with his film Family 068.

TAMK School of Art and Media is also present in the Finnish Competition by two graduation projects from last year:

Expensive Shit (Melko kallista paskaa) by Antti Tuomikoski is a portrait of Uljas-Ilmari Majuri, who lives on his secluded farm in Eastern Finland, surrounded by his endangered indigenous cattle. Ilmari is no typical farmer – he has never seen cow keeping as a profession or a profitable business. What, then, has made the young man isolate himself to his personal dreamland, trying to support himself and his cattle on nothing but a small disability pension? Is there a future for the endangered cattle and its master, and can people be any good compared to cows in the end?

Expensive Shit has already won the Student Documentary Film Award at Kettupäivät Short Film Festival. It was also chosen to the DocPoint Documentary Film Festival.

The Treasured Waters (Ei vettä, rantaa rakkaampaa) by Ilkka Rautio is a story about a young man who desires to live the finnish dream, but his hopes are about to be crushed under the unstoppably urbanizing society. A thoughtful, autobiographical story about the connection between water and a Finn as an reflection to the state of nation.

The Treasured Waters has been invited to a number of Finnish and international film festivals. Next week (February 13-21) it is one of the 26 films chosen among 603 entries to Punto de Vista International Documentary Film Festival Competition.

Tampere Film Festival 4.-8.3.2009
Antti Tuomikoski
Punto de Vista Film Festival

Photo: From Expensive Shit

Toni Edo Comes Back to Tampere with Family 068

Yesterday I got a hilarious Facebook message from Toni Edo: "It's sauna time".

Toni Edo is one of the Interactive Media Programme 2005 students at TAMK School of Art and Media. He will travel again from Barcelona to Tampere, this time because his film was chosen to Tampere International Film Festival.

The film, Family 068 (Familia 068) is a 27 minute documentary filmed in Nicaragua. More than 500 people have their homes in Nicaragua's biggest dump. They are numbered, but have no name. Are they happy in spite of the hard living conditions? Or is it a resigned happiness?

Toni has directed and produced the short film together with Rubén Margalló.

More than 3000 films from 73 countries were offered to the Tampere Film Festival International Competition, 340 of them documentaries. Sixtynine films were selected, 19 of them documentaries including Toni's film.

Can't wait to see Toni and his film. Tampere Film Festival will be March 4-8 2009.

Welcome back to Tampere, Toni.

Tampere International Short Film Festival