“DO YOU HAVE TO…?” and Other Questions – Kirsi Mäki

I began my part-time artistic career 10 years ago. I suppose it was inevitable. Writing was and still is a great channel, but the urge to illustrate took over. Or rather, the urge to create by hand, to experiment, to search for new forms of expression. Among the early works, calligraphy (which forces discipline and teaches humility) and handmade paper making are still with me, the latter offering the freedom to experiment. Natural materials have always been part of my process.

In recent years, my wandering in forests and fields has been accompanied by a digital camera, both cursed and praised. I photograph plants, both dead and alive, for identification purposes and out of interest. I photograph my surroundings, the countryside, as I see it. I don’t edit the images unless I’m searching for an entirely new form of expression. Authenticity can also be present in digital photos. The challenge of photography lies in the fact that German photographer Karl Blossfeldt created stunning plant images at the beginning of the 20th century. As a cultural historian, I often return to the past, even in my photographs. In visual arts, from Caspar David Friedrich, Carl Spitzweg, or Central European symbolists, I find an affinity for light and shadow, the drama of darkness and flashes of light. And humor should not be forgotten.

The exhibition also reflects my work with books. Between 1999-2000, I collaborated with Eeva Mattinen to create exhibitions from discarded books in libraries. I remain interested in altering books, and at the moment, book altering or artist books are strongly in the spotlight.

Thematically, the exhibition partly illustrates the literary reflections I’ve written in the Lauttakylä magazine’s monthly diaries. The same questions arise when writing and creating art. In the images, the human figure may physically be absent, but the traces left behind by humans are visible. They raise questions, though not necessarily answers.

This text was created with AI assistance