ENDLESS SUMMER
OUTDOOR EXHIBITION
IN II 18.7–20.9.2015
by Aki-Pekka Sinikoski
”If I am being totally honest, this party is slowly drawing to a close for me. I am making my way towards that endless summer. One day at a time.”
"I am Aki-Pekka Sinikoski and Last Machos is my photography project presenting the Finnish post-war generation. The men of that generation who climb, as if honoring the memory of their own war generation fathers, to the burning hot tin roofs of their houses to fix fire escapes, their newly installed hip prostheses creaking. The series of photographs paints a picture of the dearly beloved ones who can be found in almost everyone’s circle of acquaintances and whose everyday feats of valor spouses and children observe sometimes with great amusement and at other times with ultimate terror.
Endless Summer tells about identity, change, loneliness and in a broader sense about manliness and the essence of being a Finn. This series is a continuation of the photography series entitled Finnish Teens that I photographed in 2009-2011. Finnish Teens looked at Finnish teenagers by documenting the time racing by between childhood and adulthood and the sprouting identities that can be observed in teenagers exploring who they truly are as individuals. They are pictures of eager anticipation mixed with fear; the hope that one’s wings would become strong enough and one would rediscover oneself and one’s place in the world. The world is changing at an accelerating speed and just like a teenager looking at oneself in the mirror, an old man may have difficulties in recognizing the face in the mirror as one’s own. Furthermore, just like the teenager, the old man hopes that his wings will support him and make him soar – for as long as possible.
The Endless Summer exhibition in Ii includes 33 pieces, a third of which have been created as a community art project in the KulttuuriKauppila Art Centre in Ii in the summer of 2015. The other 22 pictures have been taken all over Finland during the past three years. The exhibition is featured in a public space in the middle of the Ii village for two months. The exhibition prints have been implemented on fabrics with a special technique so that the prevailing light has a strong effect on what the photographs look like. This creates an impression that the pictures sometimes intensify and at other times weaken according to the direction and intensity of the light hitting them and the time of the day. Thanks to this I can guarantee that the exhibition changes constantly during its entire existence – just like people do. Working with and for the people of Ii has been a wonderful and creatively fulfilling experience for me.
Endless Summer - Outdoor exhibition in Ii 18.7–20.9.2015 was produced by Kulttuurikauppila. Making of this exhibition was possible with the help of Taiteen edistämiskeskus, Svenska kulturfonden, Patricia Seppälän Säätiö, Iin kunta, Valto Pernun Säätiö, and all of those friendly people & other artists in Ii and elsewhere who helped me during the process. Thank you!
In Ii on July 17, 2015, Aki Sinikoski