Finnish Artist
Jari Arffman: Counterparts
Exhibit Dates: June 9 to September 11, 2008
Closing Reception for the Artist: Tuesday, September 9, 2008, 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.
HANCOCK, MI – Finlandia University Gallery will host the traveling art exhibition, “Jari Arffman: Counterparts” June 9 through September 11, 2008.
Featuring over 60 black and white photographs, Counterparts includes photographs from locations as distant as Finland, Peru, Lithuania, Russia, and the Czech Republic.
The Finnish artist will visit campus early this September to work with Finlandia art and design students.
A closing reception for Arffman will take place at the Finlandia University Gallery Tuesday, September 9, 2008, 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The reception is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
Counterparts is a compilation of three periods of Arffman’s work. The photographs combine multiple real cities into the imaginary cities of St. Pragburg, Utopia, and St. Utopia.
Arffman’s says his photographs are not documentary, rather they are intended to encourage interpretation and reflection. He adds that the strength of the imagery is reinforced by this dual reading: the recorded facts of light and shadow gain meaning when translated through the life experiences of the viewer.
The exhibit premiered in Finland prior to its visit to the Finlandia University Gallery. It will also travel to the Nordic Heritage Museum, Seattle, and galleries in Karasjok, Norway, and Budapest, Hungary.
The Finlandia University Gallery is in the Finnish American Heritage Center, 435 Quincy Street, Hancock. Gallery hours are Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., or by appointment. Please call 906-487-7500 for more information.
