Veronica Slater, Skotlanti
My four month residency at KulttuuriKauppila was a fantastic experience and one that will stay with me through my work as well as in memory. It provided a unique opportunity to generate a momentum in ideas and development that continues to unfold long after I have left. This to me is what marks the value of a residency because it is a laboratory of the mind where you have immense space to think and imagine in ways that are extra ordinary.
The generosity of everyone at KulttuuriKauppila contributed to this process and provided a calm and stimulating environment within which to make art. KulttuuriKauppila is well organised, well thought out and offers an extremely comfortable, light, airy apartment with an adjacent well equipped huge studio – what more can you ask for ? It’s a great place and I can’t recommend it enough – thank you for the creative milestone that is KulttuuriKauppila.
For more info and photos on Veronica Slater’s residency – visit the artist’s blog:- http://www.studioveronicaslaterstudio.com/
Ian Marr, Australia
Kuvataiteilija, kivikaivertaja Marrin vierailu residenssissä jakaantui kahteen osaan: lokakuussa 2007 aloitettu jakso päättyi tammi-helmikuulla 2009. Marr kirjoittaa:
To be at KK for a second visit means stepping into a familiar home, where the practicalities of life are given, understood.
It was possible to immediately reconnect with the earlier projects, to begin the new ones, conceived in the intervening months at home, to revisit the places where I worked in the autumn, & then of course to find them utterly changed by winter. Then the river is a road to every where, to new views, to new ways of seeing KK, & Illinsari, & Ii itself.
And then there are new cultural works: the achievements of the summer Biennale,of the individual KK artists in their own work,stories of their exhibitions at home & abroad, their new plans, grants & achievements.
This visit involved travel too, to a broader sweep of Finland, with KK friends: to Lapland, Luosto, Pyha, Kemijarvi, to Savo, Kuopio, Juva. Really beautiful places in themselves, they also provide a context to better understand KK & Ii.
The teaching of the youngster`s classes was a highlight, & they produced some very fine paintings in artist quality oil paints on Alta stone & Baltic pine boards.
It was also very good to be present for the re~opening of the splendid renovated city art museum in Oulu, & see both contemporary works, & important finnish painters such as Tyko Sallinen.
Thank you, as before, to Leena Vuotovesi for her kindness & constant consideration & professional oversight of the residency.
Ian Marr February 2009
Milica Milićević ja Milan Bosnić, Serbia
diSTRUKTURA-nimellä työskentelevä belgradilainen taiteilijapariskunta Milićević ja Bosnić vieraili Iissä loka-jolukuussa 2008. He kertovat vierailustaan:
Acceptance in this artist-in-residence program made great significance for us and we were very pleased to spend three months at KulttuuriKauppila. Living conditions and accommodation were beyond expected and we can only say that we truly enjoyed our stay since very few residencies can achieve such high standard.
Thing we like the most is the concept of this residency where international guest artists and local Finnish artists are working in the same place, meeting each other and cooperating. Cultural exchange gained from these interactions has been most beneficial for us and we believe it is the key point of this residency.
Our main idea in this residency, concerning our artistic work, was to continue our Face to Face project and conduct a research of Finnish contemporary landscape. Ii and its surrounding seemed like a great place for Face to Face project; therefore, after an exciting exploration of Ii’s natural and urban surrounding we managed to depict ourselves and our intimate space against this landscape and collect enough photo material for our project. Beside photography work we were also working on drawings of urban landscapes created with meticulous depiction of NY city buildings. We were very satisfied with work we produced in this artist-in-residency especially with the opportunity to exhibit this work at KulttuuriKauppila exhibition space.
It’s been a special experience to be actively involved in local art scene and we are very proud of cooperation we made withIin Hamina elementary school, sculptor Antti Ylönen as well as Liminka Art School, Oulu University of Applied Sciences and Oulu City Art Museum where we held lectures about our work and contemporary art in our country. In particular it was a pleasure working with local youngsters during our art class and we hope we managed to convey our knowledge and experience.
Alongside the great inspiration we gained from this landscape and people we’ve met, we made important contacts with some media representatives and Oulu City Museum. As result from this interaction we can expect an article about our Face to Face project in Kaltiomagazine by Mr. Paavo Heinonen but more important we discussed some possible ways to present Serbian contemporary Art in Oulu City Museum.
All things considered, we had great time and we made great friends. We enjoyed Finland so much that we’ll be looking for some new ways to go back, so, maybe we can someday repeat this wonderful experience.
In conclusion, we thank KulttuuriKauppila for this extraordinary experience and the opportunity to feel like truly great artists.
www.distruktura.com
www.distruktura.com/ii
www.distruktura.com/facingfinland
www.distruktura.com/art_course
www.contemporaryartserbia.com