Kati Leinonen: Yhteinen maisema

From the exhibition Vastapuu–jäämistö
21.10.–18.12.2022
Hippolyte Korjaamo

The exhibition Vastapuu – jäämistö consists of studio photographs taken of everyday objects from Kati Leinonen’s father in-law’s farmhouse and surroundings, alongside landscape photographs and excerpts from a family album. In the exhibition, Leinonen delineates a portrait of Heikki and Sylvi, the founders of a farm called Vastapuu, and reflects upon the personal nature of memory and the relationship with the farm’s history.

Together with other items found on the farm, the logs, Sylvi’s milking jacket, and black-and-white photographs are the raw materials for Leinonen’s works. By cropping, enlarging, and rearranging, Leinonen projects her own experiences of the estate and its remnants into the works. The process creates a dialogue, in which Leinonen produces past from the present. The items shape the memory of the work. The monochromatic photo series of Heikki’s logs or scanned images of Sylvi’s sewn handkerchiefs emphasise the significance of everyday objects and their bearing witness of deeds. However, the estate and its everyday objects are more than historical pieces of evidence of what once was – they enable a connection with the past.