2026-2027

I aim to produce the first participatory workshops to accompany my personal documentary project Toistaiseksi nimeämätön rakkaus which uses documentary photography to explore longing, loneliness, community, and humans as individuals and social animals.

The purpose of the workshops is to create meaningful encounters and moments of collaboration for participants. The focus is on dialogic viewing, well-being, and creating positive and safe experiences at the grassroots level in sparsely populated areas for audiences who do not normally have the opportunity to experience similar cultural content in their home regions.

The topics I have chosen for the encounters include cyanotype, photogram printing with ecological DIY-chemicals, building pinhole cameras from collected rubbish or other recycled materials (e.g., aluminum cans, bottles, etc.) and solariography, which documents the participants' own living environment. In some provinces, a walk-in pop-up Camera Obscura can also be set up, for example, in a market square or other suitable location such as a library, grocery store parking lot, or school—the location is always chosen for its easy accessibility in the target community.

The discussions and encounters that arise during these events enable me to deepen my artistic work in a new way and provide important reflection to support my process, as well as alternative platforms for working in synergy with local communities or individuals through photography. Presenting my works in sparsely populated areas also opens doors for new audiences to engage in dialogue with me about the themes of the work.

I have already established the necessary initial contacts, knowledge, and resources for all of these topics in the previous phase of Toistaiseksi nimeämätön rakkaus (2024-2025).

The pilot workshops and direct encounters with local communities provide important background information that can be used to further develope more established events for future collaborations, for example with provinces and organizations. At the same time, regional cultural life will be enriched and art education for residents living in remote areas will be supported.

The first workshops will be implemented in Päijät-Häme between May and September in 2026.

May 2026

I will partake in the planning and development of the pedagogical programme of the Utopias Lahti 2026 festival.

Utopias Lahti is an artist-run visual arts festival organised in Lahti, Finland. The third edition of the festival will take place in May 2026.

Utopias Lahti centres on artistic practices that activate speculation, conjecture, and imagination as catalysts for systemic change. The curation and development of the festival are guided by principles of sustainability and approachability. While our background as organisers is rooted in photography, the festival expands into other artistic fields as well, with an emphasis on lens-based media.

Utopias Lahti critically examines the material streams associated with exhibiting lens-based art. Over the years, the festival have built a local circular economy network that allows to build the festival primarily using recycled materials.

In 2026, the festival will focus on the role of site-specific practices in lens-based art.

The festival is organised by VTRY (Lahti Association of Photographic Artists). The 2026 edition is supported by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture, Nordic Culture Point, and the Olga and Vilho Linnamo Foundation. Utopias Lahti also collaborate with the LAB Institute of Design and Fine Arts.

2023-24

Välimerkki –väylä lisämeriiteille was aimed at adults who are not in full-time permanent employment, who do not have a post-secondary vocational qualification and whose aim is to find employment or start a business. It is also open to retired people who wish to continue their working life. The total duration of the training was 20 credits.

The training was funded by the European Union's Recovery and Recovery Facility (RRF), the largest programme of the EU's recovery instrument (Next Generation EU). The funding is provided by the Centre for Continuous Learning and Employment. The Service Centre promotes skills development for working age people and the availability of a skilled workforce. The Service Centre is managed by the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Ministry of Employment and the Economy.

Autumn 2023

In autumn 2023, the students of photography and video studies from Lahti Academy of Liberal and Fine Arts collaborated with the schools community collages Opitaan yhdessä participants to produce studio potraits. Students practiced cultural, social and linguistic skills in a studio and portrait situation. The photographers also sought first contact and basic experience in acting as a photographer and guiding the model in the shooting situation.

Opitaan yhdessä is a joint project of ALFA community college and Harjula Setlementti ry, funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture. The project is aimed at immigrants who have completed their integration period and have a low level of language skills. The goal is to strengthen the participants' agency and inclusion and to improve their employability. The training is free of charge and can be booked through a self-coach.

2020-2023

The overall aim of the international Discover and Reveal Your 21st Century & Entrepreneurial Skills! project (entR21) was to increase the number of job seekers who understand their key competencies well, they know what key competencies they need to improve to increase their chances of finding a job.

We developed 2 courses regarding 21st century and entrepreneurial competencies: one for the mentioned client group and the other one for the people supporting them, being teachers, instructors, job coaches.

Within the scope of the project we also do research on how we can use Open Badges to recognise and acknowledge these competencies. An Open Badge is a visual digital and reliable proof of a skill or competence that someone has acquired.

Co-financed by the Erasmus + program of the European Union

— Partners

SUEM.BE, Belgium

Stichting Bloom, The Netherlands

LJUDSKA UNIVERZA NOVA GORICA, Slovenia

TOIMI-työvalmennussäätiö, Finland

Lahden kansanopiston säätiö, Finland

Foundation Institute of Social Re-Integration, Poland

Autumn 2023

In autumn 2023, short dialogue scenes were filmed with three cameras in collaboration with art and theatre students of the Lahti Academy of Liberal and Fine Arts. The project gave the students good practical training in multi-camera production, filming, lighting, recording, editing and acting in front of film cameras.

Spring 2023

Imagined Realities -exhibition as part of the pedagogical programme of the Utopias Lahti 2023 festival with three art schools in Lahti: Art School Gaudian, Lahti Academy of Liberal and Fine Arts and Art School Taika.

2020-2022

Free education and individual tutoring provided for selected adult students to study in Fine Arts, Visual Communications and Film Studies. Studies were tailored based on the needs of the applicants (maximum of 20 study points).

Funded by the Finnish Ministery of Education and Culture.