Distribution Catalogue 2015-2016
Moving image works have been selected for the Distribution Catalogue 2015–2016 by guest curators, media artist Mika Taanila and Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma Kati Kivinen, together with AV-arkki’s staff.
Diego Bruno: Galindez (2015 | 00:21:56)
Galindez is based on the theater play El Señor Galindez, written by Argentine psychoanalyst dramaturgist and actor Eduardo Pavlovsky in 1972. The film takes as its setting the Payró Theater in Buenos Aires, in which the play was first released in January 1973. The work focus on the formation and representation of ideology, the position of the intellectual, and forms of re-presentation, actualization of historical complexities.
Sasha Huber: KARAKIA The Resetting Ceremony (2015 | 00:05:20)
Sasha Huber travels with a greenstone carver Jeff Mahuika (Kati Mahaki, Poutini Kai Tahu) to the site, between Kā Roimata a Hine Hukatere (Franz Josef Glacier) and Te Moeka o Tuawe (Fox Glacier) at Te Waipounamu (South Island) of New Zealand. On location Mr Mahuika offered a karakia blessing to symbolically un-name the glacier of its association with Agassiz and his racism.
Anssi Kasitonni: Finnish Midsummer 2169 (2016 | 00:09:45)
In the year of 2169 there will be a solar eclipse during Midsummer Eve in Finland. That changes the life of a certain female vampire bat.
Tuomas A. Laitinen: The Powder of Sympathy (2015 | 00:08:36)
Diving deep into the often obscure global flow of materials, in this instance copper, The Powder of Sympathy sets in motion a frantic flow of images combined with feverish pounding, hissing and rattling sounds sourced from West Africa, the USA and China. The video is a one- channel version of Tuomas A. Laitinen’s four-channel video installation Conductor (2014). Accompanied by Jenna Sutela’s narrative script, the video tracks the mythical and chemical characteristics of copper.
Marjo Levlin: Oblivion – O Blif Igen! (2015 | 00:30:00)
The film Oblivion – O Blif Igen tells about late 19th century migration from Finland to the United States. It is also a journey from the village of my youth, Malax, in Swedish-speaking Ostrobothnia, to California and Colorado. It is telling about dreams of a better life somewhere else, about memory and how very soon the history of ordinary people passes into oblivion. The past is so much like the present and contemporary immigration.
Petra Lindholm: Empty Vessels, (2016 | 00:08:14)
To climb mountains can be seen as a symbol of a general desire that exists in our society today. The dream of reaching the top, be happy for a few seconds when the goal is reached, and then get on to even greater heights.
Kimmo Modig & Tuomas A. Laitinen: Landlording S01E02 ‘Public Funding’ (2015 | 00:07:28)
Landlording is a series based around Kimesco, a young real estate mogul. Kimesco shares his views on public funding and myriad other issues, all related to real estate developing.
Salla Myllylä: My Tree (2015 | 00:01:10)
A hand paints an outline for a tree on a window on a sunny spring day. People and cars pass by in the suburban backyard. The painting advances little by little. Passing of seasons is filmed through the aperture created by painting. The work describes a gesture of mark making and note taking in an everyday environment.
Teemu Mäki: Madness and Civilization, (2015 | 00:56:07)
A drama documentary about xenophobia, misogynia and the relationship between violence and pleasure. Pierre Rivière, Anders Breivik and Michel Foucault; two murderers and one philosopher are the main characters. The dialogue of the film is based on court minutes and on Foucault’s writings.
Jaakko Pallasvuo & Anni Puolakka: Sacre (2015 | 00:21:13)
A cyber goth in her thirties makes dance videos at home, seeking freedom and the truth in a society obsessed with productivity and success. Her mode of living is persistently challenged by an older brother, whose caring and love come with a strive to transform her sister. The sibling drama takes a new turn upon the goth’s encounter with a dance prodigy whose brilliance seems to leave everyone else in darkness. The film draws from the thoughts of the philosopher and activist Simone Weil (1909–1943), medievalism and cyber culture amongst other influences, viewing work, art and dance as war.
Juha van Ingen: ONE (2015 | 00:07:45)
The starting point for ONE is a video taken with a mobile phone. The camera hasn’t been able to capture the original view and the resulting video contains only mystical glitch.What causes the glitch? What is the moment or subject, which was originally attempted to be documented? Is there a huge planet or a tiny cell in the video? Perhaps it is something else – a human or even God? The soundscape of ONE is homage to big questions, a mash-up of 60’s sci-fi cinema soundtracks.
Timo Wright: Null Statue (2015 | 00:08:00)
Null Statue is an experimental short film where crude oil is thrown at invisible objects, creating temporary abstract sculptures. Through editing, chaotic virtual statues are created only in time, not space. When viewed with 3D glasses, these statues come to life into the real world, evolving in front of the spectator.
Maarit Suomi-Väänänen: Log Head (2015 | 08:00)
Log Head is an experimental comedy about a birch log with a soul and a pair of skis. When old and useless, and ready to be chopped, Log Head takes off to its skis. Will Log Head’s escape be blocked?
Salla Tykkä: Retrospective (2016 | 15:17)
Short film about the difficulty of remembering and the importance of forgetting. A film essay portraits a middle aged woman, through her voice and stories she tells about analogical cameras she has been using during her life, for art and film making. Her hands are shown opening and closing the cameras and testing if and how they still function. In between these images clips from 8mm material of landscapes and animals in Sothern Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego are shown.