Images Falling From the Sky is an exhibition of iconic works by nine celebrated artists who co-create the phenomenal Helsinki School of Photography. Large formats in colour but also smaller photo formats that demand mindfulness, combined with videos and photobooks, all contribute to a first-time presentation of such master photographers as Sanna Kannisto, Elina Brotherus and Niko Luoma. Finnish art and culture have a relatively low profile in Poland. That’s not how things should be. Next to its music, architecture and literature, Finland is one of the most inspiring places in contemporary Europe in terms of visual arts. The Helsinki School is one of the most significant phenomena in 21st-century European and international art. Next to the Dusseldorf and Kharkiv Schools, it marks one of the fundamental directions in contemporary photography. The combination of reflection on the nature of the medium, immersion in the tradition of conceptual art and the multi-layered, rich visuality of Finnish photography attracted the attention of critics and curators early this century and, over time, have gained the recognition of collectors and the vast audiences of art galleries worldwide. The exhibition at the PSG State Art Gallery in Sopot presents a selection of nine out of several dozen most significant names that make up the school. The exhibition is part of the 10th Frames of Sopot Photography Festival. 

The exhibition’s title alludes to Selja Ahava’s novel Things That that Fall From the Sky. The weight of random events exceeds the capabilities of the protagonists of this celebrated and award-winning book. Extremely rare cases that are difficult to grasp through imagination disrupt the ordinary life that flows quite blissfully and unhurriedly. This is not only about traumatic and painful experiences but also about extreme beauty and happiness that escapes measurement. The Helsinki School of Photography exhibition also has something of an extraordinary, seemingly banal meeting to it, just like any other display. But should viewers accustomed to visiting art galleries take a closer look at the images, uncover ever more layers, recognise the technique and penetrate the original idea, they may find much more than they expected. There is something to such falling of events, situations, texts and images. Fallen Leaves by Aki Kaurismäki (2023) also seems to be in the spirit of the Helsinki School of Photography. He adds simple but profound emotions to extraordinary shots, turning random chance into the beginning of a story that is only seemingly commonplace. Of course, Janne Lehtinen’s photos are perfect illustrations for the key image of the exhibition as they show a person who literally has something falling on their head, something that wraps and spreads itself, clouding and colouring to blur identity and emphasise an unfamiliar moment of, say, happiness. Elina Brotherus and Sanna Kannisto’s photos have a similar tonal range and a combination of a preference for form with intimacy and personal commitment. Anni Leppala explores the possibilities of the camera, capturing the moment without chasing the decisive instant unless, like in Ahava’s novel or Kaurismäki’s film, it emerges from banality, from the slow observation of everyday life. The sublimation of trivial situations makes it possible to create painting-like compositions, saturated with colours and feelings that illustrate relationships between people. Niko Luoma’s images are more immersed in the history of art than in photography, as he makes a postmodern attempt to refresh and interpret the classics of modern and contemporary painting with a camera. On the other hand, the aesthetics of Post-Impressionism are referenced in the photographs by Eeva Karhu, who also works with layers, superimposing frames, combining and synthesising photos into picturesque afterimages. The most monumental works at the exhibition are those by Santeri Tuori. In formats similar to the works of the Düsseldorf School, his pieces do not have the coldness of Andreas Gursky’s montages or Thomas Struth’s jungle photos. Tuori tackles the topic of landscape and nature, trying to convey the scale of the elements that surround us. These are perhaps the most romantic and even exalted works out of the series exhibited in Sopot. In contrast to these majestic objects that play with scale, there are the soft photos by Niina Vatanen, captured on fabric. The artist presents a series of colourful montages which hang loosely from the ceiling move, encourage the viewers to touch them and have a sensual effect on them. This is a different, equally conceptual and at the same time more tactile direction of development of the Helsinki School of Photography. Although the exhibition at the PGS Gallery is a cross-section of a phenomenon that is not widely known in Poland, it shows only a modest part of it. The Helsinki School of Photography includes several generations of artists, dozens of names and hundreds of exhibitions, studies and catalogues. Above all, it has a diverse aesthetic that appeals to the contemporary viewers with its perfect technique and form. The artists, with the vast majority of their work coming from the collections of Timothy Persons and Asia Żak, are certainly a representative sample that is, hopefully, inspiring enough to expect other collective and solo presentations from the Helsinki School of Photography in Poland in the future.

Text: Adam Mazur