The ongoing exhibition of Finnish experimental music in Espacio Trapézio, Madrid, presents three screenings of Finnish media art in collaboration with AV-arkki and Instituto Iberoamericano de Finlandia. The exhibition is open from 15.9.–5.11.2017.
The series of three screenings kicks off on Wednesday, October 4 at 19:00 with the screening of Mika Taanila’s Future Is Now What It Used to Be (2002).
Kurenniemi: Future Is Not What It Used to Be (2002)
The mid-length documentary film is a twisted portrait of one of the unsung pioneers of early electronic art, Finnish nuclear scientist and artist Erkki Kurenniemi, revolving around his massive project of “collecting everything”.
The second screening takes place on Wednesday, October 11 at 19:00 and consists of the following films:
Ruutsalo: Two Chickens (1963)
Alli Savolainen: Concert Boy (1998, 01:40)
A variation for thumb and radio.
Pekka Sassi: Red / No Red (2008, 02:17)
Music, red and no red, political or no political.
Pasi “Sleeping” Myllymäki: Horizontal (1979, 03:37)
A formalist experimentation based on the visual idea of the stave: a folded sheet of paper changes its tone with the alteration of light and sound. The humming sound of acoustic guitar is alienated by manipulating the speed of a reel-to-reel recorder.
Mika Taanila: Kiila: Verbranntes Land (2002, 07:00)
Taanila shows how video images degrade from excessive use. How it becomes ever less visible the more often it gets copied – scorched earth indeed, instructions, their sense vanishing due to excessive consultancy. Desire giveth, then taketh away. (Olaf Möller)
Mika Taanila: A Physical Ring (2002, 04:32)
A Physical Ring is a found-footage film configured into a site-specific installation for between one and four projectors. Its raw material is documentation of anonymous physical tests that took place in Finland during the 1940s; the original purpose of the tests remains unknown. Through careful editing techniques, the inanimate research footage is assembled into a piece of kinetic art. An integral part of the piece is the specially commissioned soundtrack by Mika Vainio.
Eino Ruutsalo: Two Chickens (1963, 03:20)
Two Chickens is a form of cinematic action painting. The film presents a hysterical set of images of the female body, awkward auditions, crackers, a hovering feather and an overwhelming amount of paint and colour. Ruutsalo manipulates changing images with an intuitive intensity. Otto Donner’s music is one of the forgotten gems of Finnish movie soundtrack.
Pekka Sassi: TV (2004, 01:36)
A nostalgic short film about punk music and bright colours.
Anneli Nygren: Hammer Hill (2013, 03:14)
Rockstar Jonne 59 presents his song Hammer Hill, one-night-romance situated in the notorious part of town.
The third and the last screening takes place on Wednesday, October 18 at 19:00 and includes the following films:
Savolainen: Johan Klemet & NIls Nilsson (1998)
Anneli Nygren: When Noise and Death Meet (2006, 08:10)
The doctor of technology, Ziandra Pettersson, and the reporter Valeria Svetigorsk are presenting a new invention, the GOTH SIMULATOR. The machine is supposed to make new hit songs using the elements and lyrics of goth music.
Alli Savolainen: Johan Klemet & Nils Nilsson (1998, 03:45)
Norwegian flies.
Pasi “Sleeping” Myllymäki: Five Words (1982, 02:22)
One simply cannot be offended by a short film whose script is strictly based on the official Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish.
Pasi “Sleeping” Myllymäki: Tape Recorder Is a Wonderful Invention (1983, 02:48)
Against all odds, the film Five words did offend a viewer. There is a sixth dirty word in the audience feedback. Repeated over and over again.
Música Experimental Finlandesa, Espacio Trapézio, 15.9.–5.11.2017
More information: Espacio Trapézio