Where

VR-Konepaja
Pohjolankatu 1
Kuopio

Duration

Artists

Severi Häyhä (2000) is a multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter and composer.
Their work is focused on using the language of music to document and communicate emotional states that might otherwise be left misunderstood.

Pia Sirén (born in 1982) is a visual artist who builds large-scale, temporary works of installation art out of construction materials and works on sculptural, performative and varied collaborative projects. Sirén creates her artwork both in public outdoor spaces and in exhibition spaces. Her works form entities that engage audiences in their material and space, allowing the viewer to step into the installation and become a part of it. In 2012, Sirén graduated with a Master’s degree in Fine Arts from the Academy of Fine Arts. Her work has been exhibited in numerous private and group exhibitions both in Finland and abroad.

Mirella Pendolin (born in 1975) is a Swedish-speaking, half-Finnish and half-Spanish multi-talent in music from Vaasa: a singer, musician, pedagogue, composer and actor. Pendolin trained as a singer at the Trondheim Conservatory of Music in Norway and has since then been performing and publishing her own music as well as participated in several jazz/pop groups, composed music for various artists, theatre performances, and served as a choirmaster and a vocal pedagogue. Recently, she has been releasing her own music in a style that lies somewhere between pop and jazz with electronic and ethnic influences.

Ilona Valkonen (born in 1980) is a visual artist whose working approach involves suggestions for alternative ways to look at and understand the world. Valkonen works with new forms of painting, collegial curation and a performance concept created through collaboration, Vieno Motors. By now, over 60 artists with various backgrounds have already contributed to the different Vieno Motors actions that combine plants with creative methods, and their number is constantly growing. In addition to Finland, the performances have taken place in cities like Reykjavik, Berlin, New York, Graz, Saint Petersburg and London.

Plant Based Stories Live

Severi Häyhä, Pia Sirén, Mirella Pendolin, Ilona Valkonen (FI)

Thu 14.9.2023

At 21:30

Sat 16.9.2023

At 20:00

Where

VR-Konepaja
Pohjolankatu 1
Kuopio

Plant Based Stories will be presented live on two nights of ANTI Festival.

Plant Based Stories is a three-year project carried out by Pia Sirén, Ilona Valkonen and Mirella Pendolin that travels to Kuopio, Helsinki and Hanko. During the process, a metamorphosis takes place: the touring story-telling performance leads to an installation and performance where stories play the main role, ultimately transforming into a permanent, planted garden. In the live performance artist Severi Häyhä will also join the performing group.

At the 2023 ANTI Festival, the working group will build an audiovisual installation comprising performances based on the stories collected at the previous year’s festival. Sound, videos and live music performances are used to present the plant-based stories collected from the audience using the means of a mental garden. In the artwork, botany is replaced by the ways in which we remember plants and join them to a human narrative, stemming from the human mind. Elements recurring in the stories include the narrators’ grandparents’ house, deceased loved ones, turning points in life, love and everyday life.

Plant Based Stories II is a part of Kulkue project. Kulkue is a joint project of three major art festivals. ANTI – Contemporary Art Festival (Kuopio), Hangö Teaterträff (Hanko) and Baltic Circle Festival (Helsinki) are carrying out an exceptionally broad series of joint productions from Finland and a tour built around the works. The key goal of the project is to promote the accessibility of festivals and extend the artwork lifecycle. The project is funded by the Finnish Cultural Foundation.

Thu 14.9.2023

At 21:30

Sat 16.9.2023

At 20:00

Where

VR-Konepaja
Pohjolankatu 1
Kuopio