Pohjan rannat – Jan Eerala

In Jan Eerala’s exhibition Pohjan rannat, the focus is on the dialogue between humans and their environment. The images also tell of how the natural landscapes of the coast are being replaced by the accelerating forces of industrialization and the construction of leisure spaces. Whether this signifies the onset of decay or a counter-development remains for the viewer to decide.

Jan Eerala’s photographic work has been centered on the relationship between the environment and human activity. The encounter of different value systems has left its mark on the landscape, where the photographer’s visual language has created a delicate aesthetic of ugliness. The “enriched” summer idylls of the archipelago and the Åland Islands stand in contrast to the barren and grey views of the western coastline. The photographer’s refined technique painfully reveals the concrete physicality of the landscape, whether it be rubble, gravel, asphalt, or concrete. How far behind the traces of civilization does the landscape itself remain?

The photographer did not intend for the exhibition to be a statement or a documentary, yet both aspects emerged. “My exhibition ironically critiques the imagined appropriation of the environment and its commodification. Despite everything, the conflict between human activity and the forces of nature is intriguing, even dramatic, and often contains an almost fatalistic aesthetic. If my image series mocks the current state of coastal landscapes, the reason lies in the actual nature of our environment.”

Jan Eerala is a long-time landscape photographer and represents the tradition of direct photography. He participated in the Pohjanlahti series, which was a finalist exhibition at the Fotofinlandia awards in Helsinki in 2001. A larger Shorelines exhibition was held at the Hippolyte Photography Gallery in Helsinki in February 2002 and at the Photographic Centre Peri in Turku in August 2002.

This text was created with AI assistance