𝗩𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗦𝗔𝗔𝗥𝗜 𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗦 𝗥𝗬
Presents: Artists House 2024 Open Studios / August 31st - September 1st
Vartiosaari Artists house would like to warmly welcome you to celebrate the end of this beautiful summer with us on Vartiosaari island.
Along with our ongoing studio arts public workshops, exhibitions, and performances we have recently intiated a guest studio and residency program with the support of The Saastamoinen Foundation / Helsinki, FI. since 2023.
This Open Studios event will welcome our three newest residents: The collaborative team of Shi Tou and Mingming from China, and the Italian artist Alessandro Rolandi.
Continuing from last year we will host multiple screening programs curated by artist members, resident artists, and the guest collective Film Tonight! located in our newest project space Media Barn.
Other activities include a new catalogue launch showcasing media, performances, workshops, and documentation from 2023. As well there will be a unique outdoor theater production by the Collective Kumma.
We will also collaborate with Vartiosaari Association Seura’s co-hosting Venetsia Paivä event with a parallel program in creating a special food kiosk with locally sourced vegetables from the island allotment gardens.
Vartiosaari artists house is a place for artists to contemplate and to produce experimental visual, media and performative projects. Currently there are 15 artists working in the house. In 2022 Vartiosaari Artists Ry started to organize workshops and art for the public and the Open Studios will be an ongoing support event to secure the future of the Artist house.
Complete Schedule below
MEDIA BARN
SATURDAY / AUGUST 31ST
19:00-20:00 – Residency artist: Shi Tou and Mingming
We Are Here - 2015 / 60:00 - Film - Screenings & live presentation.
SUNDAY / SEPTEMBER 1ST
13:00 – 14:00 – Resident artist: Shi Tou and Mingming
We Are Here - 2015 / 60:00 - Film - Screenings & live presentation.
MEDIA BARN
SATURDAY / AUGUST 31ST
20:00-21:00 – Residency artist: Alessandro Rolandi
Performance Projects - Screening & live presentation.
(Variable Video Program / 2024 / 60:00)
Dread of night, dread of not-night (Storm)
One Harmonious Afternoon
Scratching hello world
something on the way 2
Spider dance @UrEAdY?
Welcome to the monkey cage-Signs
SUNDAY / SEPTEMBER 1ST
12:00 – 13:00 – Resident artist: Alessandro Rolandi.
(Variable Video Program / 2024 / 60:00)
Social Sensibility Project - Screenings & live presentation.
MEDIA BARN
SATURDAY / AUGUST 31ST
12:00-18:00 - Looping program
SUNDAY / SEPTEMBER 1ST
14:00-15:00 - Looping program
Speculation (Elation 12): Overmorrow
A Vilm program exploring the day after tomorrow.
Curated by Torsten Zenas Burns
John Koenig - Kenopsia: The Eeriness of Places Left Behind - 3:11 - 2015
Alessandro Rolandi - Spider Dance @UrEAdY? – 9:00 - 2024
Neil Luck - Thing - 3:53 - 2016
Torsten Zenas Burns & Darrin Martin - ANIMATRONLOVE - 4:00 - 2010
Eteam - Zhong Kui and the Reform of Hell - 2018 - 4:00 (Trailer)
Monica Panzarino
Four-Minute Romp Through Alfred's Sandin Image Processor - 4:29 - 2021
Jessica Andrey Bogush - Proposal for double head (a song) - 5:00 - 2017
Roma Auskalnyte - Frustration / Statements – 10:00 - 2015
David Cronenberg - The Death of David Cronenberg - 56 seconds - 2021
Miriam Dym - Ed Mirago & Energy Being visitations - Variable date / time
Jason & Debora Bernagozzi - Ritual for Biological Media - 2019 - 20:00
MEDIA BARN
SATURDAY / AUGUST 31ST
21:00-22:00 - Screening & live presentation.
SUNDAY / SEPTEMBER 1ST
15:00-17:00 - Looping program
Film Tonight! presents:
A selection of experimental and non-linear narrative audiovisual works made by
members of Film Tonight! collective during the past years.
Film Tonight! is a Helsinki-based film collective founded in April 2023 by Helena
Aleksandrova, Mariangela Pluchino, Jelica Jerinić and Roxana Sadvokassova -
four filmmakers bound by shared passion for cinema, feminist values, common
film school history and immigrant background.
Film descriptions:
1.A study on, dir Mariangela Pluchino (2020, 2:57)
“A study on” is dance film and a chemical experiment that blends 16mm expired film rolls and expired feelings.
2.Trilogy of Stage on Super 8mm in 3 parts: Whispers of Odd, dir. by Helena Aleksandrova (2024, 6:26)
This surreal short draws inspiration from clowns, acrobats and Kenneth Anger. The poetic visuals invite on a journey of boredom and curiosity by showing virtuosity of acrobats, expressions of pierrots and many other eccentric elements of entertainment and physical comedy. By the end, you might just check your nose – have you turned into a clown too?
Sweet memories, dir. by Jelica Jerinić (2024, 4:40)
Exploration of memories related to food and food making. Three women are preparing dishes personally meaningful to them, while the director's grandmothers recount the tales of what food and cooking meant for them throughout their lives.
Audition at Mystero, dir. by Mariangela Pluchino (2024, 6:39)
Three actors competing for the role of a vampire in the stage of Mystero, a theatre specialized in the horror genre. The Director of the play surprises everyone with an unexpected twist.
3.V moei Machine by Pyos & Gruppa, dir. by Helena Aleksandrova (2020, 2:24), 16mm
Music video for a band Pyos & Gruppa shot on 16mm in the cars and streets of Töölö accompanied by the lyrics of the song exploring poetic nostalgic feelings of being ‘in my car and in my dreams’.
4.Swimming hall: Elegy, dir Roxana Sadvokassova (2024, 4 min)
We tamed the wild, primordial ocean, confining it to neat boxes we call "swimming pools." This short docu-fiction, composed of found footage and filmed material, highlights the contrast between these two states of water. This video serves as the starting point for a deeper exploration of this theme in the upcoming eponymous short film.
5.Chef’s choice dir Roxana Sadvokassova (2023, 5 min)
An old grudge, a sick dog recovering from surgery, and zero resources for a film makes one creative. Done on one of those particularly desperate evenings, using found footage and phone recorded sound, this video art piece humorously tackles dysfunctional family dynamics. It’s a playful, eclectic mix of famous visuals, stitched together for a fun ride. And no, it's not autobiographical at all!
6.Heat Jacket by HASH, dir. by Helena Aleksandrova (2022, 4:48)
Part of the trilogy ‘BOYRIDE’, the film explores cars, 1 rock band and 1 groupie serving songs in a bar in the winter landscapes of Finland to rocking HASH soundtrack.
7.Infinite Galatea, Dir. Mariangela Pluchino, Julia Maura, Maria Chatzi, Ambra Reijnen & Fátima Flores. (2017, 17 min).
Pygmalion, disappointed with the women of his time, decides to create with his own hands an immaculate woman to match his expectations and rank. The creature would satisfy his pleasures and provide manpower to his kingdom. A visual essay that deals with the discursive construction of the organic body through gynaecology, which uses the ideological scalpel to mould genders, desires and sexualities.
8.JULY, 29th, 00:27, A reenactment,, dir. Helena Aleksandrova, (2020, 7:15)
The video work is a reenactment of an incident that happened to Aleksadrova on the way home in Kallio from the gallery in Töölö late at night. On July 29th she was preparing the exhibition ’Fears or Fierce?’ till late hours. Right after she got home that night, she texted her collaborator Hassinen about the incident and plans to make a reenactment work for the exhibition. You can see their correspondence in the video.
Short bios:
Helena Aleksandrova (b.1992, St. Petersburg, Russia) has a passion for genres,
subcultures, horror, and camp; she actively works with short films, employing an
experimental and artistically-driven approach.
Roxana Savokassova (b. 1992, Kazakhstan) raised in a mortuary, Roxana’s
interest in nuances of human relationships, all things morbid and comedic
expresses itself in a blend of cinematic genres and stand up comedy.
Mariangela Pluchino (b. 1991, Maracay, Venezuela) Interested in cynical
motivations and characters, she works with experimental and fiction films.
Jelica Jerinic (b. 1991, Serbia) eternally fascinated with grand romantic
gestures and exploration of human cravings for love and acceptance,
Jelica makes comedy films.
SATURDAY / AUGUST 31ST
13 - 14:45 - Artist House + Off site island locations
SCHEDULE / TICKETS: https://fienta.com/fi/kumma-company-siimes*Click link for other performances in August.
Kumma Company theater group presenting: SIIMES
(Oona Jama, Mariia Rauramo, and Sara Lohiniva)
SIIMES (a shade in the forest, twilight, nightfall)
Time feels different on the island. Condensed, intertwined, spiral. Old villas stand decaying in
time as nature slowly reclaims them. In the absence of humans, the forest grows dense,
wrapping in layers of time.During different decades, three people have disappeared here
without a trace. It's almost like they have been swallowed by the ground.
What happened to them?
Kumma Company's site-specific production, Siimes, brings the audience to Vartiosaari, from
the garden of an abandoned villa to the murky woods of the island.
Supported by: City of Helsinki and Ferries of Reposalmi.
Complete Schedule:
AUGUST 31ST / Saturday 12:00 - 23:00
LOCATION: Artist House
13 - 14:45 - Kumma Company theater group presenting: SIIMES
(Oona Jama, Mariia Rauramo, and Sara Lohiniva)
VENETSIA PAIVÄ
16:00-20:00 - Collaborative food kiosk with Association Seura. (More information to come)
Association Seura – Music event (More information to come)
LOCATION: Media Barn
12:00-19:00 – Curated by Artist member Torsten Zenas Burns
Speculation (Elation 12): Overmorrow. 2024 - 60min - Looping group video screening.
19:00-20:00 - Resident artists: Shi Tou and Mingming
We Are Here - 2015 / 60:00 - Film - Screenings & live presentation.
20:00-21:00 – Residency artist: Alessandro Rolandi
Performance Projects - Screening & live presentation.
21:00-22:00 - Guest filmmakers Collective: Film Tonight!
Helena Aleksandrova, Mariangela Pluchino, Jelica Jerinić and Roxana Sadvokassova.
Selection of personal film / video projects - Screening & live presentation.
12:00-23:00 - Catalogue launch. Vartiosaari (Wunnderkammernautica) Episode 2
By Torsten Zenas Burns with guest covers by Helena Aleksandrova / Alessandro Rolandi
SEPTEMBER 1ST / Sunday 12:00 - 19:00
17:00-19:00 - Barbecue
LOCATION: Media Barn
12:00 – 13:00 – Resident artist: Alessandro Rolandi.
Social Sensibility Project - Screenings & live presentation.
13:00 – 14:00 - Resident artists: Shi Tou and Mingming.
We Are Here - 2015 / 60:00 - Film - Screenings & live presentation.
14:00 - 15:00 - Curated by Artist member Torsten Zenas Burns
Speculation (Elation 12): Overmorrow. 2024 - 60min - Looping group video screening.
15:00 – 17:00 – Guest programmer: Film Tonight! Collective
Helena Aleksandrova, Mariangela Pluchino, Jelica Jerinić and Roxana Sadvokassova.
Selection of personal film / video projects - Looped screening program.
12:00 – 17:00 - Catalogue launch. Vartiosaari (Wunnderkammernautica) Episode 2
By Torsten Zenas Burns with guest covers by Helena Aleksandrova / Alessandro Rolandi
Vartiosaari Island location & transportation
You can get to Vartiosaari island with a small ferry that goes non-stop from Laajasalo to Vartiosaari, address: Reposalmen päälaituri (Main dock), Reposalmentie 1, 00830 Helsinki. The ferry trip takes a couple of minutes. Please note that the ferry costs 5e (round-trip ticket). The easiest way to reach the dock is taking bus number 89 from Herttoniemi metro station and getting off at “Kiiltomadonpolku” stop. From there, you walk to the Reposalmi dock approx. 500m. Please, reserve enough time for arrival. There is a parking lot at the Reposalmi dock, and you can also park your car by Reposalmentie 1 street.