Verna Kovanen
Photographer and visual artist, Master of Arts Living and working in Helsinki Finland.
EDUCATION
2022, Master of Arts, Degree on Visual Culture, Contemporary Arts and Curating, Aalto University, Finland (120 cr)
2012, Bachelor´s Degree in Photograpy, Lahti Institute of Art and Design, University of Applied Sciences (240 cr)
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023, Mikkeli Photographic Centre
2022, Kouta-gallery, Poikilo Museot, Kouvola, FIN
2022, ArtCenter Mältinranta, Tampere, FIN
2020, Galleria 5, Oulu, FIN
2020, B-Galleria, Turku, FIN
2019, Korjaamo Galleria, Helsinki, FIN
2019, SPACE PLACE gallery, Nizhny Tagil, RUS
2019, VS Gallery, Fiskars, FIN
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2022, BOOKED, MUU Helsinki Contemporary Art Centre, curated by Rita Leppiniemi, John Gayer, Miikka Laihinen, Cable Factory , HEL, FIN
2021, Simple Form, curated by Evgeny Komukhin, SPACE PLACE gallery, RUS
2020, Pori Biennale, curated Porin Kulttuurisäätö, PORI/Online, FIN
2019, Mainostauko /Ad Break with JCDeaux, curated by StreetArt Vantaa, FIN
2018, Aqua Art Miami, screening curated by XFemmes, Miami Art Week, USA
2018, Images, Tropes and Narratives - Sharing Control, curated by Martin Breidl and Harri Laakso, Marek Gallery, Wolkersdorf, AUS
2015, Where Art Meets Fashion, invitational exhibition by Berlin Alternative Fashion Week, nHow Gallery, Berlin, GER
AWARDS
2021, Best Portfolio, shortlisted finalist, IMAGO Lisboa Photography Festival
WORKS IN COLLECTIONS
Finnish State Art Commissions, HUS collection, Pori Public Art Collection, KIASMA Library, MSDM Studio Gallery Library London + numerous private collections
MEMBERSHIPS
The Photographic Artist´s Association, Helsinki Artist´s Association, The Finnish Documentary Guild
I am a visual artist and photographer based in Helsinki, Finland (MA in Visual Culture, Contemporary Art and Curating). Archive photos and spatial relationships are often visible in my images. I have a constant interest in themes of nostalgia and imagination, and these themes have featured strongly in my Broken Holiday series on tourism and holiday travel. Broken Holiday Album (2022), published by Kerber Verlag, Germany, was created from the photos in the series. The book is like a journey that takes the reader to the shores of the Mediterranean to reflect on the concept of a holiday. Read more about the book here.
My work is almost always lens-based, but for the final outcome I may also use other techniques, such as textile printing, silk screen printing or rug weaving. I am also interested in bookbinding, and creating by hand offers a good alternative both to my work processes and to the aesthetic contribution of my works.
I get exited about everyday documentaries, such as Martin Parr's photographs, but on the other hand, I keep on falling in love with the possibilities of creating new worlds through cinematic narration. Paolo Sorrentino's photographic imagery and exquisite larger-than-life locations, and the melancholic atmosphere of Sofia Coppola's direction inspire my work. Films and the theatre were a large part of my childhood.
In recent years, I have held several solo exhibitions around Finland, for example, at the Mältinranta Art Centre in Tampere, at Korjaamo in Helsinki (2019), B Gallery in Turku, and at Gallery 5 by the Oulu Artists' Association. Beyond Finland, in 2019 I held a solo exhibition in Yekaterinburg, Russia at the Space Place Gallery. Photos of the exhibitions can be viewed here.
In addition, my works have been exhibited in several group exhibitions, such as Pori Biennale 2020, and outside Finland in 2018 at the Marek Gallery in Austria, and at the Aqua Art Miami Art Fair in the USA. I have actively participated in video art exhibitions with my works and worked as part of the 55-98 collective, as well as the Pina Bounce Dance Company.
I have been working with photography and video art since 2012, when I graduated from the Lahti Institute of art and Design (BA in Photography). In 2016, I created a photobook entitled “Invisibles - True Stories about Children's Imaginary Friends”, which received national attention in Finland. In addition, the documentary “One Man Multishow”, which I directed, was included in the 2015 Love and Anarchy Festival and was invited to participate in the Budapest Design Week by Finnagora, the Finnish Cultural Institute in Budapest. In December 2020, I graduated from Aalto University in Helsinki with a Master of Arts degree. Currently I work as a visual artist, photographer and teacher of visual subjects.
