Mikko Kallio

GATHERING PLACE

24 May 2016

INVITED BY NIINA LEHTONEN BRAUN

"In the beginning work goes quickly, I arrange bits of paper and different objects on the sheet of paper, and that's the composition. Then I can look at it for weeks. This seedbed is not yet a living one. It is still undefined. Now I need to let things develop and grow."
Mikko Kallio's works are in many ways archeological. Sand, wood, wool and pieces of paper stratify into colorful, voluminous collage landscapes. These landscapes are populated by figures who wander around, peek and hide in their surroundings; they gather together in dots and surfaces, they teem with linework. Diverse elements seem to be growing together, like a unique ecosystem.
These works do not force an interpretation out of their audience, they do not search for a particular mood nor are they serious. Otherwise they could cause anxiety. Like music, Kallio's artwork gives audience space. The figures seem satisfied with their condition and appearance, likewise the materials of the works. They have all settled in their habitats. In their own state of being.
"I try to avoid outside influences when I work, otherwise I get lost. I want to stick to the image and the materials. Paper, drawing, wood, colors. Paper and materials are a seedbed where things happen, things are born, they move, die, are born again. Organisms and objects are thrown into a seedbed, and they settle there, into life, picture, into their own tune."

- Written by Jarkko Suhonen (M.A.), based on an interview of Mikko Kallio

Mikko Kallio's (born 1971, Espoo, Finland) collage works are drawn with ink and graphite and include watercolor with attached found objects. Kallio has exhibited in Finland, Sweden, Germany and USA and his works are included collections such as Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma in Helsinki, HAM Helsinki Art Museum, State of Finland and private collections internationally. Thank you for support: National Council for Visual Arts, Finland and Arts Council of Pirkanmaa.