4–28.6.2026

(Closed on Midsummer’s Eve 19 June.)

Fall Heights I examines certain visible structures in our society, railings. A railing is a detail in our built living environment. The purpose of railings is to prevent us from falling and from stumbling. The visible structures of society function in the same way as invisible ones. Structures both support and restrict individuals. A railing prevents us from falling while also limiting our movement. Just by existing in a space, a railing promotes certain kind of behavior and bodily and spatial choreographies. At the same time, it is a sign of care and the presence of danger.

Railings exist in cities, forests and homes. They exist in private and public spaces and situations. Railings are everywhere.

They are visible and can be grasped. They can be played on. One can lean on them or bump into them. People hold onto railings, lean against them or pass by them. Often they mark dangerous places and drops. Sometimes they can be found in the middle of nowhere or hidden in the bushes. A railing is a bodily phenomenon. It is in proportion to the size and shape of the human body. Railings define the normative way of being and model of the human body. Railings are only built for humans; for other species, fences are built instead. A fence prevents all movement. Fences are built on borders, while railings are installed in areas with a vertical drop. Fall Heights explores the following question: what is the deepest essence of the structures? Do railings exist for humans, or do humans exist for railings?

Focusing on railings offers an experience of tunnel vision that shuts out unnecessary noise. Hysterical-analytical railing meditation is the distinctive genre of the Fall Heightsworks. Through a common structure such as a railing, an entire universe can open up.

Fall Heights I is the first part of Sera Martikainen’s multidisciplinary series of works. The project will run from 2025 to 2028. It includes photographs, spatial elements, moving image and movement. The exhibition at Galleria Huuto features an installation, photographs and a video work. The work is based on an artistic and personal study of railings. This personal and bodily grassroots railing study produces observations about the mechanisms, meaning and essence of structures.

Sera Martikainen is a documentary film director and visual artist whose work includes bodily methods and elements.