Sonja Salomäki:
The miracles of concrete brutalism and a face in stone
Galleria Huuto Jätkäsaari 2
7.5.–25.5.2014
“The miracles of concrete brutalism and a face in stone” explores the ugliness and beauty of decay by combining two manifestations of architecture and urban environments that are separated by eras and shapes and that have grayness and patina in common.
Some of the works feature the appearance of the 1970s concrete of my everyday environment, Itä-Pasila in Helsinki, in 2014: patterns formed by mold and slush, the architects’ perspective arrangements possibly based on quadrilaterals and gaps, shot from a human perspective.
Those works are counterbalanced by the Parisian Georges Cain Park’s stone statutes marinated in acid rain and moss that I have observed for a few months during the past couple of years and that still feel human and comforting in spite of being very old.
Clothes are the base material of my works because people and architecture always interact with each other, whether the criteria of good architecture are met or not. The same stories are repeated in the scenes of life built by people.
The mold or corrosion on the surfaces looks beautiful in the ornaments and organic shapes of old architecture, even startling in Itä-Pasila. Studies have also shown that natural elements, organic shapes, beauty and opportunities to affect one’s own environment increase people’s level of comfort and improve their mental health even if the users of the environment, people, were not aware of it.
