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Tourism “travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from within the place visited.”
During 2008 Galleria Huuto visited Sami Artist Center in Káráshjohka with two exhibitions, in February and September. In May 2009 the project continued to the Gallery Forja Arte in Valencia, Spain.
Galleria Huuto’s visits in Lapland and Spain – the traditional holiday destinations of Finnish tourists – are entitled under HUUTOurism.
The exhibitions has been supported by The Finnish-Norwegian Cultural Foundation, Letterstedtska föreningen, FRAME Finnish Fund for Art Exchange, Arts Council of Finland and the Alfred Kordelin Foundation.
HUUTOurism at Sami Artist Center, Karasjok, Norway 18.9. – 15.10.2008
HUUTOurism at Forja Arte, Valencia, Spain, May 21 – June 19 2009
HUUTOurists at Sami Artist Center, Karasjok, Norway 15.2. – 9.3.2008 are
Maija Blåfield, Niina Lehtonen-Braun, Tanja Koistila, Marjo Levlin, Charlotta Östlund
Maija Blåfield
“A tourist bus is on a sightseeing tour. It stops and then goes on again. A guide is talking, we look out of the window. Even here every passenger sees something no-one else can see, and has experiences no-one else has.”
Niina Lehtonen-Braun
“I have been living in Berlin with my family for four years. We are just living common everyday life of a family with children. I still often feel like an outsider tourist in Berlin, but for my children it is their home town. That is why they are in the leading role on my video.”
Tanja Koistila
“Everything is relative, and depends on the situation. As a tourist, you only spend a short while somewhere; you are irresponsible and critical; yet traveling is enjoyable, and you are open to new experiences and views. Then again, it’s possible that you attract undesired attention, or represent something you wouldn’t like to. Quests for exoticism and distance might lead you to the average corner store, regardless of how far you’ve travelled.”
Marjo Levlin
“Last autumn I found in our abandoned summerhouse some old tourist badges that I had bought on the trips in my childhood, and remembered my youth dreams to travel all around the world. I got the idea to make a dress of these dreams; a dress that is also a dress of power. For me it somehow includes the dilemma of the world today, with possibilities of fulfilling dreams and yet being conscious of the consequences our acts of freedom may have. Most of the badges and streamers in this dress are souvenirs of strangers, bought from flea markets in Finland. I often escape to these markets to search for surprises; to trips that are cheap and enjoyable.”
Charlotta Östlund
“My parents-in-law visited Iceland and bought a souvenir plate with a map of the country and polar bears on it. There are no polar bears in Iceland. Why would anyone want to sell such a plate? Sometimes, it seems like there is a silent agreement between the tourists and the locals, when they are trying to fulfill your expectations. I am interested in the idea that you by being present always affect a place. As a tourist, there’s a risk that your presence exploit the place of your interest. However, it can also contribute to the development of the place’s identity.”
