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A Land Shared is an exhibition
presenting the contemporary art of the Fenno-Ugrian peoples of the
northern regions. The Hanti, Mansi, Nenets and Saami share a culture
of reindeer husbandry adopted over the course of several millennia,
and membership in the widespread family of the Fenno-Ugrian languages.
But at present the traditional means of livelihood are endangered
and the future of the languages of these peoples is uncertain. This
exhibition at the Gallen-Kallela Museum reviews the means provided
by the visual arts for peoples living under the pressure of mainstream
cultures. Could the visual arts be a channel with which nomadic peoples
moving into the cities can keep and bear their ethnic heritage, language
and memories? Could the visual arts establish living connections among
peoples across the borders of states and countries, like the migrations
of the reindeer herds in the past?
The contemporary art of the northern peoples is an art of a landscape
that defines the domain of man. It entails a humility before nature
that has been learned over the millennia, but also ingenuity in creating
things out of scarcity – and a comprehensive and respectful
attitude to the environment and other people. The people of the north
have traditionally lived in a large area, seeing afar, and with a
knowledge of the surrounding endless landscape repeating itself in
similar form and appearance. It seems that this far-reaching gaze,
the wind blowing across the fells, has also left its mark on the works
of art, passing right through them.
The Arctic landscape is broad and multi-cultural. The Saami of Finland,
Sweden and Norway form a natural and unforced bridge among the Nordic
countries. Now this bridge is extended via the Barents Sea to the
Yamal Peninsula and from there to the Ob River and its tributaries.
This scenic journey contains rugged fjords, the fells of Lapland,
the taiga, the tundra, rivers and the sea. Over 10 indigenous languages
are spoken in the area among an equal number of cultures bearing their
own characteristic traits and features.
The contemporary art of the northern regions also marks a return,
in both material and non-material terms. It repeatedly takes up ancient
means and materials, expressing itself in an awareness of its past
and traditions. Artists are bridging the gap of silenced years, when
their own culture was made invisible. This silence can date as far
back as several centuries, but it has not made the tale of the north
outmoded. On the contrary. Today it is stronger than ever –
now on its own terms, as personal narratives containing pain, but
also joy and humour. Craftsmanship in different materials and their
surprising parallels, clarity of form and a multidisciplinary approach
are characteristic of this art. They contain an inimitable feeling
of space, openness and freshness. They are marked by sanctity and
a strong communality, strength and fragility.
There are memories in the landscape: ancestors both male and female,
routes and paths preserved over the generations, hunting, fishing
and berry-picking grounds, sacred sites. The essential aspect is the
desire of the artists to return and remember, and the desire to create
a future, in which the Saami, Hanti, Mansi or Nenets background is
part of the culture of the mother country on equal terms. Today, the
choice is explicit and sometimes calls for particular courage. We
hope that A Land Shared will reinforce the art of the north and its
related identity – because of its cultural traits and broader,
universal, appeal.
This exhibition features 33 artists from the Saami regions of Norway,
Sweden and Finland and from the Autonomous Districts of Yamalo-Nenetsia
and Hanti-Mansia in Western Siberia.
Norway: Asbjørn Forsøget, Aage Gaup, Aino Hivand, Annelise
Josefsen, Iver Jåks, Hans Ragnar Mathisen, Synnöve Persen,
Ingunn Utsi
Sweden: Per Enoksson, Monica L Edmondson, Rose-Marie Huuva, Britta
Marakatt-Labba, Maj-Lis Skaltje, Lena Stenberg
Finland: Iria Ciekca-Scmidt, Marja Helander, Helena Junttila, Petteri
Laiti, Satu Natunen, Outi Pieski, Merja Aletta Ranttila, Anni Rapinoja,
Nils-Aslak Valkeapää (1943-2001)
Russia: Gennadi Khartaganov, Igor Khudi, Viktor Yadne, Aleksandra
Yukhlimova, Mikhail Kanev, Leonid Lar, Nadezhda Pavlova, Gennadi Raishev,
Vasili Samburov, Snezhanna Zyryanova
The exhibition and the catalogue also contain photographs by Tuukka
Uusitalo from Siberia and Sábmi (Saamiland) from the years
1993-1998.
The exhibition will be open from Tuesday to Saturday from 10 am to
4 pm and on Sundays from 10 am to 5 pm.
The exhibition will be on show at the following venues:
The Gallen-Kallela Museum, 1 February - 18 May 2003
The Sámi Museum SIIDA, 18 June, 2003 - 15 February 2004
The Wäinö Aaltonen Museum of Art, 5 March - 30 May 2004
With support from:
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