Constructiveness can be found in ideas and acts that contribute to finding solutions and creative progress. It may emerge when means are scarce, energy is low or when it is understood that we need to be gentle with one another. Constructiveness can present as clarity of mind, a willingness to experiment or innovate and make something new, and a desire to look for unexpected collaborations
The applied arts and making by hand is something people often turn to in order to find release. By making an object, a new world is sometimes created in the process. A better world can also be created intentionally, by consciously seeking and making practical choices along the way. Thinking with the hands helps to explore ideas and solutions intuitively, which may not emerge when we take a verbal or abstract approach to thinking. The use of slow technologies raises the question whether craft as a calming activity is a basic need, a luxury, or paradoxically both.
The exhibited artworks carry ideas about the form or intensity of prayer, what coming together can achieve and how to create a space for it, and how to recognise your needs and take care of yourself. The exhibition asks what we can learn from history about the use of and attitudes towards various materials, what materials we can still invent and how to push the limits of this process, what beauty and knowledge emerges when we listen to the material. Artists often address unpleasant truths both on a personal and social level, trying to find ways to steer towards a better future. Many of the exhibited works show how constructiveness is reflected in love. When all things superfluous have been cut.
Artists
Karin Roy Andersson (Sweden), Riikka Anttonen (Finland), Ieva Baltrėnaitė-Markevičė (Lithuania), Sofia Björkman (Sweden), Per Brandstedt (Sweden), Vincent Dumay (Sweden), Signe Fensholt (Denmark), Hanne Haukom (Norway), Liisa Hietanen (Finland), Severija Inčirauskaitė-Kriaunevičienė (Lithuania), Kati Kerstna (Estonia), Lauri Kilusk (Estonia), Karel Koplimets (Estonia), Arja Kärkkäinen(Finland), Krista Leesi (Estonia), Alves Ludovico (Finland), Jennie McMillen (Sweden), Anda Munkevica (Latvia), Kadi Pajupuu (Estonia), Anu Penttinen (Finland), Tiina Puhkan (Estonia), Saara Renvall (Finland), Vilde Rudjord (Norway), Taavi Teevet (Estonia), Margit Terasmees (Estonia), Ketli Tiitsar (Estonia), Linda Vilka (Latvia) and Ellisif Hals, Yuvia Maini and Cassius Lambert (Sweden and Norway) presenting a collaborative work
Curator: Maret Sarapu
Organisers: Merle Kasonen, Maret Sarapu, Anu Almik, Katre Ratassepp, Keiu Krikman
Design: Kärt Maran
Graphic design: Laura Pappa
Installation: Tõnu Narro, Mihkel Lember, Arvi Anderson
