“We are forced to choose between meaning and ex-sistence, and the price we pay for access to meaning is the exclusion of ex-sistence.”
– Slavoj Žižek
Joonas Kota’s exhibition consists of paintings made on fabric and pages of magazines displaying luxury products. The magazine pictures presenting objects of desire are distorted in the works and, in a way, the pictures remain inside the paintings as transparent reflections. Kota’s works make the viewer ponder the illusions built both by the painting and the advertisement.
The works of Kota have been influenced by artists such as Neo Rauch, Tal R, David Hockney, and Sigmar Polke.
Joonas Kota (Master of Fine Arts) graduated from the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts in 2002. During the years 2005–2009, he lived in Copenhagen.
Kota’s main exhibitions include solo exhibition Trailers at the Kluuvi Gallery (2004), collection exhibition Miehen mitta at the Helsinki City Art Museum (2004), solo exhibition Flaw in Barcelona (2005), group exhibition Songs of Freedom and Love at Platform Garant, Istanbul (2006), Serendipity at 1A Space, Hong Kong (2006), and the latest group exhibition Dialogues at the Central Exhibition Hall ‘Manege’ in St. Petersburg (2009).
Kota’s works are included in the Nelimarkka Fund Foundation’s collections as well as in the collections of Helsinki City Art Museum, the Päivi ja Paavo Lipposen Rahasto fund of the Kansan Sivistysrahasto foundation, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma.
The exhibition has been kindly supported by the Majaoja-säätiö foundation.
