Artist Vesa-Pekka Rannikko will represent Finland at the 2011 Venice Biennale. The artist was selected by Laura Köönikkä, curator of the exhibition and Artistic Director of FRAME Finnish Fund for Art Exchange. The 54th Venice Biennale takes place from June 4 to November 27, 2011.

“My choice was influenced by the versatility and re-inventiveness of the artist as well as his ability to take charge of architectonic space. Rannikko’s international fame will also enhance Finland’s visibility at the multinational Biennale”, says exhibition curator Laura Köönikkä.

Amongst Vesa-Pekka Rannikko’s most recognisable works are sculptures that reproduce objects in three dimensions, mimicking paintings. Rannikko has also created several location-specific works where the usual boundaries between  viewer, work of art and space are blurred. His works challenge the limits of viewing and experience: an image becomes a material object while the space of the work becomes an image. Viewers feel impelled to question the veracity of many of the works, due to the juxtaposition of their theme and the way they are realised.

For Rannikko, one starting point for the exhibition at the Venice Biennale is the Aalto Pavilion in Venice. Ceated by Alvar Aalto, it was originally meant to be a temporary structure. Now Rannikko is keen to explore its role and character as a stage for what is Finnish.

"When the Aalto Pavilion was built in the 1950s, it was of national significance to Finland. It is interesting to study the current role of the building and the art exhibited there as an international, national or personal representation. My plan is to create a narrative installation which makes the building a part of the work of art through commenting on the structure and historical status of the Pavilion itself", says Vesa-Pekka Rannikko.

Sweden will be in charge of the Nordic Pavilion at the Venice Biennale next year. In 2013 the Nordic Pavilion exhibition will be organised by Finland.

Images: Vesa-Pekka Rannikko and Laura Köönikkä. Photos by Julia Weckman.

Images are available to download in high resolution here. Please contact mona.berg(at)frame-fund.fi to request a password.

For more information, please contact:
Laura Köönikkä, Artistic Director
Tel +358(0) 50 602 68

For press material and images, please contact:
Mona Berg, Communications Officer
Tel +358(0) 40 503 3380

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