Kaisa Koljonen: Metaphysics

Metaphysics, an exhibition by Jyväskylä-based visual artist Kaisa Koljonen, presents printmaking and poetry that explore themes of existence and reality at Gallery Aski, in Turku.

The exhibition unfolds a playful, abundant, and distinctive visual world whose intricate details invite slow and attentive viewing. The works combine various intaglio printmaking techniques in different configurations. Throughout the exhibition, the prints and poems complement and deepen one another.

The works are, in a sense, an attempt to understand reality. They offer no comprehensible explanation—only the mystery of perception expressed in the artist’s own visual language. Rather than providing answers, they leave the viewer with a scattered collection of keys, without any expectation that a lock must be opened. Within the works, the psyche’s inner symbols and entities seek expression, yet once drawn they begin to lead lives of their own, playfully pulling the artist along in unexpected directions.

The works are rich in symbolic detail. Koljonen does not regard symbols as the exclusive property of religions or ideologies, but as independent forms and beings that communicate their own purpose through their visual appearance. Although Koljonen is interested in different religious and philosophical traditions, she is not affiliated with any religious or ideological movement, and recognizes many shared elements between them.

---

Kaisa Koljonen (b. 1992) is a visual artist specializing in intaglio printmaking. Her work brings together the universal laws of nature and the processes of the human psyche. Koljonen’s artistic practice is slow and deliberate, and she finds a calming, ritual-like quality in the process-oriented nature of printmaking.

“The theme of this exhibition originates from one of my earliest memories, when I was three years old. I was looking up at the dark blue winter sky above Observatory Hill in Helsinki and felt an overwhelming sense of longing. It was my first encounter with an existential desire to reach beyond this world. Over time, that longing has evolved into the driving force behind my artistic practice.”

Welcome to the opening of the exhibition on Thursday July 30th from 5 to 7 pm!

An artist talk will take place on Sunday, August 16, from 3 to 4 PM. Welcome!

Instagram: kaisakoljonenart
Web page: https://kaisakoljonenart.portfoliobox.net/