Jenni Toivonen: lichen

From the exhibition: Kanto
18 October – 14 December 2024
Hippolyte Korjaamo

Jenni Toivonen’s exhibition Kanto at Hippolyte Korjaamo explores the transience and transformation of landscapes and their effects on the human mind and body. At the center of the exhibition is the artist’s deep attachment to the slowly vanishing nature surrounding her childhood home. The forest, which has long provided Toivonen with a sense of belonging and security, is becoming a reflection of the cycle of life and death, leading to a reevaluation of the identity once shaped by the surrounding nature – trees, lakes, and various species.

The Finnish word “kanto,” which means both a tree stump and carrying, refers to the reciprocal care between humans and other forms of life. Amid the national discussion in Finland on logging, deforestation and species loss, the impacts of changing landscapes are visible in many parts of the country, but also deep within ourselves – the landscape we call home is shrinking into an unrecognisable non-place. From an ecofeminist perspective, Toivonen believes that our bodies are part of these places and  extensions of the nature that has raised us, regardless of where we are.

About the artist: Jenni Toivonen is a visual artist working in the expanded field of photographic art. Her practice addresses themes of interconnectedness of life, ecology, and impermanence, which she often explores through the materiality of the body and the earth. Through corporeal methods, Toivonen aims to build reciprocity and reinforce her connection to the land and other forms of life.