HIPPOLYTE STUDIO
Kalevankatu 18 B, 00100 Helsinki
+358 9 612 33 44, www.hippolyte.fi
Open: Tue–Fri 12-17, Sat–Sun 12-165–29 January 2012
Minna Pöllänen
Wood on TreesWood on Trees (2010–) is a slowly developing project in which Pöllänen documents her attempts to restore and repair two birch trees that have died standing. The material in the work consists of discarded pieces of industrial timber board. Pöllänen documents the trees three or four times a year, inspecting the condition of the trees and repairing any damage. Step by step, new parts are added to the trees, and they are groomed by trimming and fixing the trunks. Slowly, as the original trees rot away, what remains in the forest are two new trees made entirely of timber boards.
Through the absurd construction process, the work reflects upon man's relationship to the environment and its modification. The series constitutes of photographic images documenting the progress of the work and of drawn plans which lay out the different stages of the project.
Minna Pöllänen (b.1980) is an artist photographer working in England and Finland. In her works she investigates themes and stereotypes associated with observation, becoming and ownership of landscape. In addition to photography, she works with text, sketches and constructions as well as statistical material. Pöllänen earned a Master's degree from the London College of Communication in 2011. Concurrently with the exhibition in Hippolyte she has work on show at the Young Artists 2011 exhibition in Kunsthalle Helsinki.
The work has received support from the Finnish Cultural Foundation.
More information and press images:
Hippolyte Studio / Photographic Gallery Hippolyte, +358 9 612 33 44, info@hippolyte.fi
(image: Minna Pöllänen -- Spring Trim, March 2011)
