NIEGUT – Marja Viitahuhta ja Ánnámáret

The exhibition Niegut (Dreams, Imaginations) both reinterprets and deconstructs the imagery, myths, and assumptions associated with the nature of Sápmi.

In collaboration with Ilkka Heinonen and Turkka Inkilä

What happens when ancient beliefs and modernity meet, forming new relationships with old cultural signifiers? How can we look at a landscape free from the images through which we have learned to perceive it? How does the memory of a landscape connect both to our lived experiences and to the images of that landscape—and ultimately, even to our dreams of it?

The works in Niegut (Dreams, Imaginations) both reaffirm and dismantle the imagery, myths, and assumptions tied to the nature of Sápmi. The pieces strive for a rhythmic ebb and flow, where images, landscapes, sound, presence, and the profound feeling of being in the world can be approached both intimately and with engagement, or alternatively, observed from a distance. They depict both real and imagined, internal landscapes.

At the core of the works lies Ánnámáret’s joik, with each joik unfolding its own world and theme. Responses and counterpoints to these joiks are provided through the musical expressions of Ilkka Heinonen and Turkka Inkilä, as well as Viitahuhta’s moving images.

The Artists

Media artist Marja Viitahuhta and musicians Ánnámáret aka Anna Näkkäläjärvi-Länsman (joik), Ilkka Heinonen (bowed lyre), and Turkka Inkilä (electronic music, shakuhachi flute) have collaborated since 2018 at Ánnámáret’s invitation. Their work has taken form in Nieguid duovdagat, a concert production combining media art and music, where each musical piece is paired with a corresponding video artwork. Additionally, they have produced a series of video works presented at film festivals and screenings, and in 2021, they released the music album Ánnámáret: Nieguid duovdagat. Their collaboration continues to expand, now also materializing as video installations exhibited in gallery spaces.

This collaboration is a dialogue between music and visual art, but it is also a cross-disciplinary artistic exchange between Sámi and Finnish cultures. Viitahuhta is originally from Inari but now resides in Helsinki, as do Inkilä and Heinonen. Ánnámáret, meanwhile, lives in Nuorgam. Their creative process relies on remote collaboration, individual artistic work, and shared planning and rehearsal sessions.

The exhibition at Poriginal Gallery can be seen as a sister exhibition to Duovdagat (Landscapes), which was on display at Galleria Titanik from January 24 to January 29, 2023. That exhibition also featured video works created in collaboration between Viitahuhta, Ánnámáret, Inkilä, and Heinonen—though different pieces from those presented at Poriginal. Three of their works, Dolat, Jearrat máttaráhkus, and Dološ niegut, are also available for viewing on Yle Areena and Yle Teema starting from February 4, 2023.

Acknowledgments

We extend our gratitude to the following for their support of our work and projects over the years:

Taike, Kone Foundation, Alfred Kordelin Foundation, Sámiráđđi, Sámi Parliament, Sámi Education Institute, Sámi Cultural Center Sajos.

Translated with ChatGPT