The exhibition by Johanna Pöykkö consists of paintings where the painting paste and the material below it have disappeared. The reference to lace bedding introduces the thoughts of past, repetition, and change.
The rhythm reflects that of the lace in old bedsheets. Old Finnish bedsheets traditionally had a narrow lace strip at one end, and that was folded on top of the blanket. In the 1960s, duvet covers begun to replace the traditional bedsheets, forgotten in cupboards and left there for the next generation to find.
”Repetition works in many directions: individual pieces in a series of repetitive works. The exhibition started with three-part pieces. I would always paint three nearly identical pieces, and together these would form a single work. In addition to the repeating subjects, I work on the material in a repetitive manner, I work it until the subject shows itself. I paint the hole-patterned surface. I use a strong, sodium-bisulfate-based paste that makes the brittle. To fortify the process I use a heat treatment, and after that I wash away the eroded, burnt material. I take my time with the elements. I have taken them with me to Hailuoto island’s autumn winds and on the frozen Oulu river. I watered down a sheet in the cold and let it freeze until it was hard. I observed its essence as part of the landscape.
The use of crochet lace as the starting point for my paintings is a pausing exercise. I mirror the past to present, memories to reality. Manual labor is a state you can return to. It means routines, repetition. Something constant among change. It means spending time with the thoughts of your own choosing. I can decide whether my thoughts take me back to the past, or try to find out the things that are worth saving in the present.”
Johanna Pöykkö (1977, Rovaniemi, Finland) is a Oulu-based textile and visual artist (TaM) with a passion for spatial works. In her art she deals with a person’s relationship with other people and the surrounding world. She uses sheet fabric as her material for passing on the information, and serigraphy and painting as her techniques. Pöykkö’s works have been exhibited in Oulu, Kemi, and Jyväskylä Art Museums, in Craft Museum of Finland, in the Haa-galleria of Helsinki Artists’ Association, in Galleria 5 of Oulu Artist’s Association, and Galleria Mältinranta of Tampere Artists’ Association. More information: @johannapoykko
This exhibition is supported by Kone Foundation. The Finnish Heritage Agency supports the exhibitions of Iso Galleria.
The exhibition is open May 2nd – June 19th, 2025 Wed–Fri 12–18, Sat–Sun 12–16. Closed on May 29th.
