Mikko Kallio Stories from an Abandoned Place

In Mikko Kallio’s (b. 1971) works, various found materials, paint and drawings create a setting for possible stories. The figures contain references to humans, plants or imaginary creatures and combinations thereof. They appear in landscapes that resemble an imaginary world of stories, as equals with pieces of wood, a rake part and layers of paint. In the world of the artist’s works, the House of Generations has grown together from several parts, the Snowman Miracle happens near the Sandcastle of the Wasteland and the Sky Opener is swinging in the background.

“For me, wasteland is a free area where diverse plants can play. Rough surfaces and spontaneous gestures combine with systematic construction. The process of creating art is a sort of wasteland. I admire the physical feeling of materials, their shapes, the abundant diversity of combinations and how the matter and material keep changing throughout the process.”

The exhibition at Galleria Huuto features works in which Kallio has used acrylic and oil paints as well as objects and various materials. The exhibition also features a series of works on paper which the artist calls drawing collages. The feeling of play is strongly present in the works. Cut pieces of paper are overlapping and inside each other, on several layers at the same time. An object sinks into the painting, a piece of wood frames the upper edge of the strange portrait. Kallio’s works allow us to see the useless in a new light.

Mikko Kallio’s works have previously been on display at ARTag Gallery in Helsinki, Galleria Himmelblau in Tampere, Susanne Pettersson Gallery in Stockholm, HilbertRaum in Berlin and Tampere Art Museum. His works are included in the art collections of the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, Helsinki Art Museum, the Finnish State and Tampere Art Museum. In 2019 and 2020, he worked in artist residencies in Düsseldorf, Mänttä and Paris. Kallio lives and works in Tampere.

The exhibition has been supported by the Arts Promotion Centre Finland and VISEK.