Art phenomena and contemporary photography at the Jyväskylä Art Museum in 2023

Image: Elina Ruohonen, Try Me, 2020, Finnish State Art Deposit Collection, from the exhibition Überhund – The Fascinating Dogs of Art

The exhibition year begins with a solo exhibition by Tiina Pyykkinen. Pyykkinen is known for her large-scale paintings which create dialogue with the viewer. The multilayered surface of the paintings reflects the surrounding space and seems to change constantly as the viewer moves around the artwork.

The special quality of the painted surface is not based on traditional use of colour, rather in her work, the artist takes advantage of certain special effects of the paint itself in a process she has studied over the years. In this exhibition, a mirror wall reflects the artworks along with the whole museum space forming an installation.  The artist is interested in the act of seeing and how perception can be transformed through painting.

Born in Saarijärvi in 1983, Pyykkinen completed her MFA at the Helsinki Academy of Fine Art in 2014.  She was awarded the Young Artist of the Year prize in 2017. Pyykkinen has also produced many public artworks, the most recent of which were installed in Jyväskylä at the Kuokkala School in 2019 and on the Nova hospital facade in 2020. 

Opening at the same time in the museum’s gallery is an exhibition of the works by long-standing printmaker Jyrki Markkanen (born in 1956, Uurainen). This exhibition includes new, three dimensional sculptures combined with printmaking, as well as some video work. The exhibition is produced in collaboration with Jyväskylä’s Luovake Centre for Creative Photography. A second part of the exhibition consisting of the artist's photographs is on display at Gallery Ratamo. 

The second exhibition in the art museum’s gallery this spring is the solo show by young, Jyväskylä resident, artist Deniz Satır. Satır uses traditional tufting techniques to create colourful pieces out of which often emerge themes about anxiety and other thoughts and concerns. This exhibition includes a large, 200-piece installation called ”Ommetaphobia” along with some of the artist’s newest work. 

This summer, the art museum will open the largest exhibition of ”dogs in art” ever seen in Finland, with the collection of work in Überhund – The Fascinating Dogs of Art. Over centuries, the dog has been our companion and our co-worker but also a muse and a source of inspiration. It is surprisingly common to find dogs in art, but they are usually so mundane and ordinary that they are not always noticed. The exhibition Überhund brings dogs to the forefront, out of their usual roles and jobs, as the main attraction. This circulating exhibition was curated by the director of the Salo Art Museum, Susanna Luojus, and was produced together with the art museums of Salo, Kouvola, Kuopio, and Mikkeli. 

The exhibition by internationally renowned contemporary photographer Elina Brotherus, is a retrospective of the artist’s work from the popular series of the 1990s to her new works. In addition to traditional photographic work, the exhibition includes videos. This exhibition is one of a three-part exhibition series. The other two parts of the series are simultaneously on view at the Alvar Aalto Museum and Galleria Ratamo. At the Alvar Aalto Museum are on display works in which the artist has interacted with Aalto buildings and dance is the theme at Gallery Ratamo.

In the art museum’s pedagogical art space Ilmiö (Phenomenon) there will be two mini-exhibitions in 2023. At the beginning of the year there will be art for babies and young families in the exhibition Vauvan vinkkeli (Baby’s buzz) by TaidePiiLO. In the fall, the STEAM exhibition and workshops deal with sustainability and are a collaboration with the University of Jyväskylä.

Jyväskylä art museum's exhibitions 2023 

11.2.–7.5.2023
Tiina Pyykkinen

Gallery 11.2.–19.3.2023
Jyrki Markkanen 

Gallery 25.3.–7.5.2023
Deniz Satır

26.5.–1.10.2023
Überhund – The Fascinating Dogs of Art

14.10.2023–21.1.2024
Elina Brotherus

Art Space Ilmiö

11.2.–6.8.2023 
Baby’s buzz

15.8.2023–5.5.2024
Art and Science for Sustainability

More information on exhibitions:
Teija Lammi, Head Curator (exhibitions), tel. +358 50 462 2695, teija.lammi[at]jyvaskyla.fi