Hanna Vihriälä Blowing Flower

“The exhibition continues the theme of garden weeds and “holy waters”, which has also been my topic thirteen years ago, in 2006, when I had my previous exhibition at the Gallery Sculptor. At that time, there were more of the garden weeds, one river and forty-two holy lakes (Pyhäjärvi in Finnish).

The observations of immediate surroundings have been, nearly at all times, the basis for my artistic practice. An artwork can capture a single moment, but by necessity, it is just a small glimpse, a summary of an event. I feel the same way about the viewing experience. I have a permanent interest in those areas that exist in-between painting, graphics and sculpture; in some kind of material tension between stability and fragility.

To this exhibition I´ve made only one garden weed, a dandelion, and as its materials I´ve used acrylic pearls and rustproof cable. The proportions of the blowing flower are correct, but the scale has grown bigger. The flower does not necessarily take its distinct form as the viewer enters the gallery, but as one moves in the space, it tightens to recognizable.

To me, the blowing flower is ordinary and magical at the same time – something I think many people might find relatable. The essence of the blowing flower is in its momentariness, and the simultaneous persistence and fragility that the flower depicts, is touching.

Suvanto (Stream pool), the other artwork of the exhibition, is based on the landscape of my childhood, the waterside of Pyhäjoki: same stones again and again, water stays still, and time after time, everything pauses.

I have been thinking about my works and these two exhibitions; the similarity of the themes and the recurring names of the artworks. After experiencing change and loss, I might choose to look at subjects that don´t change and that are still and repeated. It’s comforting to look at a familiar landscape, same plants or old artworks, and to find moments of recognition. Maybe one can think that the situation is always, in some ways, the same.”

In Tampere, 31 July 2019.

-Hanna Vihriälä

The exhibition has been supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation and the Arts Promotion Centre Finland.