Posted on

20171113

Wrote a detailed summary (in Finnish) of my art-camp contribution for 12-18 year old kids from Hyvinkää and Hämeenlinna children’s art schools. Added links to Peggy Pierrots talkshop-guidelines and referred to Poste Restante.  The title “Postructuralism for Kids -lecture” brings a smile to my face.

Neighborizome project development is in a mid development crisis. Nothing threatening but we need to find more sensible ways in to work together. We drafted a budget for next year.. If everything goes as planned we’ll publish a booklet and host a miniature performance art festival in the spring of 2018. Things will be confirmed next week.

Through this collaboration I’ve come to understand of my personal shortcomings as a project manager. Instead of engaging in negotiations which would be rooted on clearly articulated opinions, I tend to continue addressing questions I have issues with for as long as it takes for the group to address them the way I prefer – This way I inadvertently assume indirect control of the discussions, without clarifying and assuming responsibility for my intents. This style of management is rooted in collective low budget production culture (typical for performance art in Finland) where members have strong creative opinions and they don’t have the resources to challenge their beliefs. When issues are continually re-address the aims and shape of the artwork (or project) is address as a series of tasks which fit within milestones and deadlines (instead of creative intents and visions). As a result the project will be lead by the person who invest the most in task solving and this seldom makes for good art.

Vili Mustalampi performed well at the Kom-theater sound night at Vuotalo. I haven’t listened to the recording yet. I think the Mitä kuulu+ (for Ihme-days) & Kutsu projects which focused on the changes in city soundscapes are now complete. I’m not completely satisfied on how things went. The 48min documentary I made is a tad too long and unfocused and unfortunately I haven’t found anyone who would be interested in publishing it. I should share it more boldly to people I imagine would like it.

Posted on

20171023

Performed with the Neighborizome group at the Koneen säätiö Lauttasaari mansion renovation topping out party last Thursday. We prepared a timecapsule/ritual kit for the future and buried into the yard. Builders and guests could vote on its content. Builders voted on an Anonymous Mask and a Koskenkorva vodka flask (Fitting symbols for struggle). They threw coins into the kit for good luck.

Learning Ableton Live in preparation of a gig at the Viestejä Vuosaaresta (KOM-theater / Helsinki Model) event. The gig is on 2.11 and I’m scared. Vili will recite a marine weather report using his flamenco/gypsy-style singing skills. The tone of the singing is similar to an Adhan. Lauri Wuolio is also performing at the event.

Preparing a teaching gig for Janakkala (for kids, 12-18 years) next weekend. There will be 21 students. I’ll be teaching them how to “walk”.

Preparing a 1,5h lecture next Friday on my artistic practice (in the framework of posthumanism/ecology) for dance and pedagogy students of Uniarts Helsinki and Aalto Uni. I’ll start of by explaining that my mother was a Marxist, recap how my shared interests with the Helsinki communist youth association evolved into (very) slim involvement with anti-globalization and anti-war movements and how celebration over the 9/11 (2001) attacks resulted into a restlessness which lead me into crafts (In short before 9/11 dirty clothes were cool – Post 9/11 dirty clothes were scary).

Wax-treated my jeans coat. 1 part boiled linseed oil, 1 part beeswax mixture. It will take 6 months for the linseed oil to dry.

  1. Nude Photo (1987) Derrick May
  2. Model 500 – Night Drive (1985) Juan Atkins
  3. Crack Down (1990) Carl Craig
  4. The Final Frontier (1991) Underground Resistance
  5. Alleys Of Your Mind (1981) Cybotron (Juan Atkins & Richard Davis)
Posted on

20170807

Ima Iduozee talks about radical dreaming, afrofuturism and dance on the Ruskeat tytöt blog. He focuses about the experience of alienation and presents social hacking as a tool for integration. The portrayal of hacking as integration is clever.. Perhaps social hacking would offer a more effective framework for developing cohabitation skills in general. Integration policies currently expect people to transform themselves into Finns. The hacking approach would allow them to stay as they are, while making the system work for them. He credits his time in the military as an eye opener: The uniform alienates (from a personal body) and grants access (to a general body). This aspect of the military would be very interesting to explore. Iduozee is hosting courses at Zodiak in the Autumn and I’m tempted to enroll.

But.. I wont have the time. My autumn is going to be very intensive. I’ll be leaving for Brussels in a month, stay there for two weeks and three days after returning perform in NPTurku festival. After Turku I’ll work as a workshop host for youth in Hyvinkää while working edit +20 hours of video material of the Mounted Police force of Helsinki and preparing for a show in Vuosaari with Vili Mustalampi. I’ve reached the point where I’d benefit from an assistant (and even afford to pay them).

Ruskeat tytöt blog has interesting new entries. Afrosuomen historiaa etsimässä (“In search for the history of Afro-Finland”) podcast investigates the history of Finnish colonialism and racism. Maija Baijukya demonstrates how Finnish colonialism begun early 1600. This is evident through figures like Clas Fleming and Hendrik Carloff. Finns were also present in the Belgian Congo starting from 1890 onwards (See Kongon Akseli for details) and in Namibia. The topic is very important but I think shes cutting corners. She makes a striking claims that the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission in Namibian helped to support Nazi eugenic experiments.