Simona Koch

While her residency stay in Jakobstad Simona Koch continues with a series of works under the name „ABIOTISM“.

Abiotic comes from the greek and means “without life”. There are things in the world that are said to not be living and yet they are in motion, can store information and are crucial building blocks for the bodies of creatures. In societies with an animistic view of the world, things such as stones, water, the sun, crystals are believed to have certain powers, capabilities and even a soul. 

In her work „ABIOTISM / Water“ Simona Koch investigates the behavior of water and its ability to reflect the mode of the climate and the other elements (wind, earth and fire). In early greek nature philosophy the idea arised that everything has its origin in the four elements. Thales of Milet even thought that water was the prime matter. Later, Empodokles established the theory of the classical elements.

With another work (Captured Abiotism) she is trying to capture these abiotic aspects of nature, that can be found for example in reflections, certain constellations or movements with a self-made pinhole camera.

www.en-bloc.de, www.abiotismus.de

Captions to the images:

ABIOTISM 7 / Water, 2017

Captured Abiotism #2, 2016

Intrusive or extrusive? Christoph Mügge

Our guest artist from November (2016) to April (2017) has been (or still is) Christoph Mügge.

His first project was to start working for an installation at Galleri Gro. The exhibition "Genomgångsledsblockeringsöppning" (directly translated into something like "Passage way direction blocking opening") opened in January. 

The installation acted as some organic "being", totally taking control over its surroundings both physically and psychologically.

As a contribution to various political and cultural discourses, the work acquired a conceptual relevance and acted as some sort of almost scientific visualisation of several burning topics in contemporary society. 

Whether this is how art (or subcultures - good or bad) lives and spreads (or are seen as) can perhaps remain unwritten in this post. However the intrusive - or extrusive - work did indeed cause a certain amount of questions and even irritation to some degree. Thus it effectively put its finger on several issues connected to contemporary [economical, environmental and ethical] mindsets.

More about Christoph Mügge and his work, is found on his website.

Guest artists - Catherine Ludwig & Jessica Kallage-Goetze

Residence Artists in July-August was Catherine Ludwig and Jessica Kallage-Goetze. 

Both artists was here through our collaboration with Oberpfälzer Künstlerhaus in Schwandorf.

Oulanka Nature Piece. Jessica Kallage-Goetze

Jessica Kallage-Goetze (above)

Catherine Ludwig

"Crazy golf"
To get to know a culture at ease, I am dealing with their specific activities. During an Artist in Residence in Finland this summer I confronted myself with one dying and one trendy sports which are related to each other: mini/crazy golf & disc/frisbee golf.
The demise of NOKIA has hit the Finnish economy hard - a lot of people can no longer afford an expensive sports like golf.
But an alternative to golf has opened up: the frisbee golf, which is especially played in the woods.
In a “Tableau Vivant”, a large drawing, showing about 30 very concentrated frisbee players in bizarre poses while their attempt to place the frisbee in the metal basket, I dealt with this new trend. Will this trend also spill over to the forests of Austria?
I also started to evolve the “old fashioned leisure pleasure” - mini golf. In any place and on each campsite in Finland there is a mini golf course - some still alre working, some others already “out of order” – but all of them are very similar. Since the mini golf requires only little space and few resources, it makes sense, to revive it. However, it would need new ideas and concepts for it.
I join this recreational activity and the artistic debate and put new incentives to this old fashioned sports: new rules, new tracks and advanced game options.
In sketches and plaster models you see first ideas: other formats, other tracks with more holes...

Catherine Ludwig

Guest Artist - Marilisa Cosello

During January - February 2016, Marilisa Cosello worked with the project Matrimonio

Rehearsal Stage - Poems from Ostrobothnia

This Weekend - in Helsinki - at Esplanadparken - in a Container.

The Fine Arts eduction of Novia participates in The Pop-Up Österbotten event in Helsinki. This is done through cooperation with AiR-Jakobstad and current guest artists Susanne Schär & Peter Spillmann.

In fact, the whole concept was handed over to Susanne and Peter.

During the last months, they have worked with the container project and the result is now to be seen in Helsinki between Thursday 11.6 and Saturday 13.6.

A number of Fine Arts Students, as well as some teachers (see credits below), joined the project.

Se the container in Helsinki and see the film here (link).

--------------------

Rehearsal Stage

Poems from Ostrobotnia

with

Maja Andersson . Nicoline Aspvik . Robert Back . Albert Braun . Johan  

Sandås . Marja Seppälä . Emilia Siilasvuo . John Sjöberg . Susanne  

Schär & Peter Spillmann

Concept

Susanne Schär & Peter Spillmann

Artist Talk - Patrik Qvist

Wednesday 28.1 at 15:30 PM

Artist Talk by Patrik Qvist (-68), architect studies at City College of New York and Kungliga Tekniska högskolan in Stockholm (MA)

Patrik is currently the guest artist at Platform in Vasa. His work is technically varied and consists - among other things - of construction, installations and painting.

Campus Allegro, Lecture room 138 (next to the entrance at Runebergsgatan 8).

Welcome!

"Sway- the scattered forest of ancient trees: About a year go I started on a new project about trees that have been around for several thousand years. I had come to a point in my work with environmental issues where I wanted to engage in something positive and less gloomy than reports on climate change and found that really old trees could provide an interesting starting point for a discussion on resilience, sustainability and environment. On Wednesday, I will show some of this work, the bulk of which still is in progress; and also talk a little about alternate models of financing an art project and the artist as a tourist."

http://www.patrikqvist.com/

http://www.secondfloormarfa.com/qvist.html

Following images from "Shacks".

Guest Artist - Jane Fawcett - Artist Talk

On thursday 22.1 at 15:30 PM, we have our first Artist Talk of the year when current Residency Artist Jane Fawcett (UK) presents her work.

Campus Allegro, Lecture room 138 (next to the entrance at Runebergsgatan 8).

Welcome!