Päivi Allonen
Shell and Core
12.9.–6.10.2024
I explore human inadequacy and limitations. I borrow visual references from nature, animals with shells and their protective mechanisms. I examine boundaries where protection, instead of providing shelter, isolates one too much from the environment and harms the individual rather than benefiting them. I reflect on situations where resilience disappears due to weakened interaction and everyday tasks begin to feel like a heavy burden.
My exhibition Shell and Core features paintings and installations. They present statements. They are notes about fear and anxiety. They form the center of a bad day, a closed storage space and perhaps a desire for something better.
I am particularly interested in the visual appearance and survival strategies of animals with shells. Small-shelled organisms are known to have existed before the Cambrian period, at least since the end of the Ediacaran period, around 565–542 million years ago. Hard-shelled species evolved during a phase lasting approximately 5–15 million years, during which nearly all organisms became extinct following the appearance of the first predators. Only shelled creatures remained, as they were able to protect themselves from the predators.
Humans develop different kinds of shells around themselves. Sometimes it may help an individual survive, but sometimes it isolates them from the community. The uncertainty of life and the ability to cope with it is present in the exhibition. It would be easier if things did not change, if they stayed in their own boxes, remaining stable and predictable. If only the drain did not clog, chewing gum did not stick to the sole of your shoe and your hair never got caught in a zipper.
Päivi Allonen (b. 1972, Helsinki) is a Vantaa-based artist whose works are based on painting and space. The similarities between the vulnerability of nature and humans often provide a starting point for her works. Allonen has also worked as an art teacher and written about art. She has a fine arts degree from an art school in Imatra and has undertaken further studies at the Lahti Institute of Fine Arts, Lahti Institute of Design and Uniarts Helsinki’s Academy of Fine Arts.
Thank you
The City of Vantaa has supported the artistic work through an artist grant.
