PHOTOGRAPHIC GALLERY HIPPOLYTE
Kalevankatu 18 B, 00100 Helsinki, Finland
+358 9 612 33 44, www.hippolyte.fi
Open: tue-fi 12:00-17:00, sat-sun 12:00-16:002-24 May 2009
Nelli Palomäki
I, DAUGHTER
"Posing for the camera is rather like watching yourself in the mirror. We consciously strike up a pose, take on an expression. A portrait is almost invariably a surprise, the picture of ourselves is not what we had imagined."
The exhibition I, Daughter consists of large-format black-and-white portraits of young women and girls. The feminine woman in Palomäki's photographs is strong and self-conscious, almost defiant. In these photographs, the photographer is not an outside observer, but a vital presence in the shooting situation. The portraits are nearly timeless and speak to the viewer by putting the subject into the centre.
"I have been looking for the perfect photograph, but it seems to be in hiding. Photography itself is a continual process of disappointment. Small accidents and mistakes are part of the work, and it may well be that they are ultimately what keep up my interest in photography. If I would chance to take photographs that I thought were perfect, I would probably stop taking them."
Palomäki employs different approaches in her work that divide it into three parts. In the large facial portraits she has divested the subject of everything superfluous; all that remain are the face and the gaze. In the broader portraits the central element is dress; different outfits bring out the many different roles of woman, and detach her from everyday contexts.
The third type of photographs are self-portraits, although Palomäki herself does not appear in them. The pictures are taken by the subjects themselves. This device has the effect of depriving the artist of the power to choose the moment of exposure, even though the picture has otherwise been set up by her. Palomäki is interested in the way that people present themselves in photographs. The key element in her portraits is the subject's presence, above all her gaze that serves as the vehicle of interaction between subject, photographer and viewer.
"A portrait can be a distillate of a period of time, it can recall things that have been forgotten. We see in photographs our own growth from child into adult, and our different roles during that journey."
The title I, Daughter binds the exhibition into a whole. All women are their parents' daughters, yet they are all individuals in their own right too. The child's role is transformed into the role of an independent woman, yet the fact of being a daughter remains part of one's identity.
Nelli Palomäki (b. 1981) lives and works in Helsinki. She is currently studying for a Master's degree in photography at the University of Art and Design Helsinki. Nelli Palomäki's primary theme is portraits and their ability to retain memories that would disappear without a photograph. She is interested in the way people like to show themselves, and also how others see– or take a photograph of – a person.
Nelli Palomäki, Self-portrait at 4 #2, 2009- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Photographic Gallery Hippolyte Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary
Thirty years passed in December 2008 since the opening of Photographic Gallery Hippolyte. The gallery celebrates its anniversary year from 4 December 2008 to 29 November 2009 with a programme that includes exhibitions, a photographic festival, a cross-disciplinary art event and a residency. The anniversary events of Photographic Gallery Hippolyte are part of the Year of Photography 2009 programme. www.katse.orgPhotographic Gallery Hippolyte’s anniversary year has been supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation.
Alfred Kordelin Foundation has supported the Year of Photography 2009.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Information and press images:
Petronella Grönroos, exhibitions co-ordinator
Photographic Gallery Hippolyte, +358 9 612 33 44, firstname.lastname@hippolyte.fi
www.katse.org
