Still Struggling is a selection of Struggle video series and newly made photo-paintings, that bid farewell to the character of the archetype suit-wearing male. Made in collaboration with the actor Niko Saarela, in each video work the main protagonist humorously acts out a seemingly every-day struggle, within various settings.
Depicted carrying a heavy suitcase through a snowy forest, falling asleep on the job and attempting to walk through crashing waves. Each absurd gesture reminds us that we must move forward while invoking an emotional response to his futile struggles and efforts.
The photo-painting works are stills of the same suit-wearing male but partly covered in paint. The intention is to transform the images into something else by adding another layer, meaning and idea.
STRUGGLE series:
STRUGGLE: Untitled, HD, 6.24 min, silent, 2014
STRUGGLE: X, HD, 5 min, stereo, 2021
STRUGGLE: VIII, HD, 6.24 min, silent, 2018
STRUGGLE: VII, HD, 6.30 min, stereo, 2018
WAITING FOR GODOT (FROM STRUGGLE), HD, 3.20 min, stereo, 2018
STRUGGLE: IV, HD, 6.24 min, silent, 2016
STRUGGLE: IX, HD, 6 min, silent, 2018
STRUGGLE: V, HD, 6.24 min, silent, 2017
Arugam Bay, 30 cm x 127 cm, Diasec, 2018
STRUGGLE: III, HD, 8.35min, silent, 2015
PHOTO-PAINTING WORKS:
Hulk, 2021, 75 cm x 75 cm, Digital C-print, Acrylics, Framed
Pantalone, 2021, 75 cm x 75 cm, Digital C-print, Acrylics, Framed
Agamemnon, 2021, 75 cm x 75 cm, Digital C-print, Acrylics, Framed
Harlequin, 2021, 75 cm x 75 cm, Digital C-print, Acrylics, Framed
SOME POSTERS, INSTALLATION SHOTS
The Platform gallery, Helsinki, 2021
XIDAN Culture Square, Beijing, China
Aesthetic Art Prize Catalogue, 2015