PASSAGE – Minna Kangasmaa

Minna Kangasmaa’s solo exhibition Passage is like an excerpt, a chapter, or a fragment of a larger work. It depicts movement, transition, and change. The exhibition is based on Kangasmaa’s ongoing series Systema naturae, which she has been developing since 2008. This series consists of over twenty works, including sculptures, installations, and video pieces, exploring the interactions between humans, society, and nature, and their potential to generate both destruction and progress.

A central aspect of Kangasmaa’s recent work is a method in which the artwork, as a material entity, is not fixed or static but instead engaged in a continuous process of transformation. This movement is inevitable, occurring even on a small scale due to the natural changes that materials undergo over long periods. In this process, the works are not isolated or closed systems but open, permeable structures. Many of Kangasmaa’s pieces are so-called process-based works, which she continuously expands, modifies, or develops in various ways.

Through her art, Kangasmaa investigates contemporary ecology and our relationship with the material world. The works in the Systema naturae series are deeply tied to an era in which human activity has irreversibly intertwined organic and synthetic elements within natural systems. This realization has brought to light the problematic nature of the concept of “nature” itself. While the word “nature” is commonplace, its definition becomes increasingly complex as new perspectives on nature also reveal new insights into ourselves, society, culture, and history.

In the 18th century, Swedish naturalist Carl von Linné classified humans as one species among primates in his taxonomic system. He added the phrase “Nosce te ipsum”, meaning “Know thyself,” as a directive. Inspired by this, Minna Kangasmaa has created works that seek alternative ways to understand the Earth as a meeting place for both human and non-human entities. At the core of her work is the uniquely human capacity for empathy and the idea of extending this empathy to encompass the entire planet. The way we relate to other beings, how we use and distribute dwindling resources, and how we treat fellow humans, animals, plants, and all life on this planet have profound consequences for both the present and the future. In this, empathy plays a decisive role—it may be the key to a new kind of understanding.

Minna Kangasmaa was born in Oulu, where she currently lives and works. Her works have been exhibited in both solo and group exhibitions in Finland and internationally. Recent exhibitions include the Mänttä Art Festival (2019), solo exhibitions at MUU Kaapeli in Helsinki (2019) and Galleria Vanha Raatihuone in Turku (2017). In September, Kangasmaa’s works will also be featured in the nordiSKulptur exhibition at Galleria Sculptor in Helsinki.