Anetta Lukjanova & Veikko Seppälä
8.11.-1.12.2024
Opening / Avajaiset 7.11.2024 18-20:00

Lukjanova & Seppälä’s third collaborative exhibition functions as a natural continuation to the previous two. Whereas the earlier instalments focused on the sources of inspiration from the artists’ youth the new exhibition delves more into process and end result. A polished product in its technical splendor is coupled with its lifecycle from design to obsolescence and decomposition. Each one of these phases is treated with the same appreciation. A turquoise nitrile glove is inherently as valuable as an aesthetically pleasing piece of craftmanship from times past. A pale polyacrylic hairpiece can prove itself as useful as a piece of clothing lovingly worn to shreds. The border between utilities and tchotchkes is blurry but they share common ground in their tendency of accumulating and multiplying.

Anetta Lukjanova’s work is known for its figurative representations of lived human experiences. In this exhibition her work consciously avoids literal depictions of persons leaving only traces of humanity. Notable emphasis has been placed on composition with dedication in their planning. The artists work setup functions as the foundation of the compositions which has been refined with carefully added elements, which create a web of connections and mental images between them and the day-to-day happenstance inside the studio. The carefully crafted set design and the impromptu are tied together with precise painterly craft, refining the inner universe of the works. In this universe dissonance is mended with harmony between objects. The focus on inanimate objects and alternating between acknowledging and ignoring their real-world utilities lends space to delicious free association. The permanent and ephemeral paired together simultaneously undercut and uplift each other, shifting the focus of both the composition and the interpretation from one element to another.

Among Veikko Seppälä’s works for the exhibition is a dress which functions as a representation of the artist’s concept of an ovenfresh utilitary product, in which the seeming perfection of industrial grade, serially produced consumer goods culminates. This branded unreality is presented alongside the realities of life in the exhibition space. Things spoil and break no matter how much effort was put into crafting them. Perfection itself is artificial and cheap but aiming for similar levels in one’s own creative process is where one becomes whole. The works utilise multiple techniques, some familiar and some not to the artist, giving space to learning through error while acknowledging the ephemeral nature of the final product. The temporary nature of the work and its unraveling, both mechanically and organically has been incorporated in its value, with diverse representations of the development, consumption and degradation.

Veikko Seppälä (b. 1993) is a dressmaker, mender and artist based in Helsinki, Finland. He received his BA with honors from the Istituto Europeo di Design in Milan, Italy in 2020. His work consists of a mixture of various handicrafts and modes of textile manipulation. Sustainability is integral to his process, especially in limiting the amount of textile waste and finding creative ways of reusing the already existing scraps. In the current year he designed the costumes for the Red Nose Company production Catwalk, and together with the actress Minna Puolanto he has developed all-ages educational workshops on the topics of overconsumption and the opportunities which reusing clothes provide.

Anetta Lukjanova (b. 1993) is a visual artist based in Helsinki, Finland. Since graduating from Barcelona Academy of Art 2019 Lukjanova has exhibited her work and executed public mural paintings both in Finland and abroad in Norway, Switzerland, France, Russia and Spain. From 2022 Lukjanova has been continuing her studies in the Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki. Lukjanova specializes in oil painting, drawing and large scale murals. She utilizes observation, photo collages, and digital image editing as tools in constructing works, which she executes using classical painting techniques. Lukjanova is interested in the contrast between fast and slow image building, resulting in new ways of interpreting the meanings embedded in the images.

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