November Exhibition: Marika Säkkinen - KOAN

The November exhibition at Koivu ja Tähti cultural centre's exhibition space Lyra. Graphic designer Marika Säkkinen from Oulu has worked as a graphic designer at a newspaper and organized four solo art exhibitions.

KOAN means a story, dialogue, question, or statement, and is used as an aid to meditation in certain meditative traditions. A koan question has no rational answer - through reflection, the meditator seeks to understand themselves and the nature of reality at a deeper level. The exhibition is Säkkinen's exploration of what visual koans might look like.

The works are nature-themed and sketch-like: the images combine finished and unfinished craftsmanship. The exhibition also features sketchbooks and studies - observations in diary style, both in text and image.

"The starting point of my art is exploring the meaningfulness of life. I am inspired by details I observe in nature. Light, meditativeness, and simplicity - either in the subject or in the way of expression - characterize my work. The austere beauty of ancient Japanese aesthetics, wabi sabi, fascinates me." • Marika Säkkinen