At 5 AM – Matti Närekangas

Matti Närekangas, a visual artist from East Helsinki, graduated from Pekka Halonen Academy in 2020. He primarily works with painting, drawing, and music.

His solo exhibition “At 5 AM”, opening on June 2, 2022, at Poriginal Gallery, presents a series of new oil paintings. The works are rooted in Närekangas’ childhood—not as precise depictions of past events but as memories processed through multiple layers of interpretation.

A melancholic undertone runs through the exhibition. On TV, Darla dies in a car accident, someone is drunk at a wedding, and at 5 AM, plotting begins.

“Through oil painting, I piece together a puzzle of the past. Once completed, I have uncovered something new and brought it into the present. During the painting process, I explored imagery from early 1990s Finland while listening to gothic rock, ambient music, and noise. My painting technique closely resembles alla prima (wet-on-wet painting). Some works I revisit later, while others are finished in a single session. I strive to transfer the emotions and memories evoked by music and images onto the canvas in the moment—because by the next moment, they may already be gone.”

The exhibition is supported by the Arts Promotion Centre Finland.

Translated with ChatGPT