Mika Taanila’s exhibition “Partial Head Clog” at La Neomudéjar Art Centre, Madrid

La Neomudéjar Art Centre and Instituto Iberoamericano de Finlandia present Mika Taanila’s exhibition “Partial Head Clog“. The exhibition is open from 11.5.–29.7.2018 and includes video installations along with photograms from the series “Black and White Movies”.

The exhibition kicks off with two screenings included in the programme of Madrid New Media Festival IVAHM on Friday, May 11, at 20:00 and on Saturday, May 12, at 20:00. The following films are screened:

My Silence (2013, 12:45)

This ‘reductionist’ video and sound piece is an experiment into what happens when you take out the most important element from a specific canonized feature film classic.

The Future Is not What It Used to Be (2002, 52:00)

A twisted portrait of one of the unsung pioneers of early electronic art, Finnish nuclear scientist / artist Erkki Kurenniemi, revolving around his massive project of “collecting everything”.

Optical Sound (2005, 06:00)

Obsolete office tools transform into musical instruments of the future. The film is based on The Symphony #2 for Dot Matrix Printers by [The User].

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.

Tectonic Plate (2016, 73:31)

A camera-less lettrist film about fear of flying, security checks and time zones. After returning from a trip to Tokyo, the protagonist is stuck at a hotel nearby the Helsinki airport. The use of various technical devices, slivers the time-management and modifies the jet-lagged consciousness.

Mika Taanila: Tectonic Plate (2016)

Mika Taanila (s. 1965) is a filmmaker and visual artist based in Helsinki, Finland. He works with documentaries, experimental film and visual arts. Human engineering, utopias, failures and man-machines are recurring themes in his films and installations. Taanila’s works have been shown at major international group shows, such as Venice Biennale (Nordic Pavilion 2017), Aichi Triennale (2013), dOCUMENTA (2012), Shanghai Biennale (2006), Berlin Biennale (2004), Manifesta (2002) and Istanbul Biennial (2001). Solo shows include the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma in Helsinki (2013–14), Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (2013), TENT, Rotterdam (2013) and Galleria Heino, Helsinki (2010). Taanila’s short films have been screened altogether at more than 300 international film festivals and special events. In 2015, Taanila was awarded with the prestigious Ars Fennica Award, the biggest Finnish art award.


Mika Taanila: Partial Head Clog, La Neomudéjar & IVAHM, Madrid, 11.5.–29.7.2018

More information:

La Neomudéjar

IVAHM


AV-ARKKI HAS PROMOTED AND DISTRIBUTED FINNISH MEDIA ART SINCE 1989. AV-ARKKI’S PROMOTIONAL EFFORTS HAVE MADE THE ARTISTS’ PARTICIPATION IN THIS EVENT POSSIBLE.