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Jyrki Parantainen
Dreams and Disappointments.
Serie "Dreams and Disappointments" explores manīs physical and psychological vulnerability. Representations of the human body are marked, at their perceived points of vulnerability, by push-pins and attached strings. The strings, pulled tight to a point outside the frame of the image, allude to the presence of an unknown, dominant force.
Events in the images are describing individualīs relation to himself and other people. There are social situations that use to be repeating in human life: the field of understanding or missunderstanding between male and female or the confusion of a child on the front of expectations.
In cinematical set ups they are usually represented in the moment when they are facing their history, future, dreams and their fears.
In spite of the tragical tones of the serie the meaning of it is anyhow strongly to questionize this unsure, random and sometimes even threatening quality of our everyday life. As an opposite, with soft irony, colours, details and visual richness the collection points to the warm and optimistic atmosphere. After all, the meaning of these works is to lead audience to the comforting experience that there is anyhow always a chance to the happy end. FIRE (1994-1999) FIRE is a pyrotechnical expedition that investigates meanings of fire in cultural history, society and contemporary art. For me the fire is simultaneously an equipment, process and objective. FIRE is consciously designed as an ambiguous work. The mythology of fire is present in the photographs, but only in the background. Flames represent above all a means of exploring the psychology of fear in my own primitive reaction and the reaction of my audience to experience of being suspended between control and losing control. FIRE offers a stage for strong emotions and mental state of negative pleasure. My works are study about beauty and horror, and a sudden moment of irrevocable catastrophy. And still: even thought series FIRE represents images of lost, disappearance and total destruction, they also are unavoidably a metaphor for reform and rebirth. In short: FIRE is essentially a work about the sublime. FIRE is a study of interiors, invaded by an alien force of living fire. Inhabitants are present but absent: I show places in their everyday guise, sometimes also before the cleansing and transforming inferno. Everyday life objects, souvenirs, furniture and utility articles marks people living in them. All the "studios" are carefully chosen, staged and sometimes totally renovated. Kitchen, office, library, corridor, movie theatre. With my assistants I personally furnished and burned down the rooms in various empty buildings. In other words, the images are more than just fiction. They also document my artistic pyromania. Pyrotechnical process has to be plan precisely beforehand to avoid risk of life or loss of photographic equipment. None of the shootings could have been repeated. The fire destroys everything in a moment. Timing of lit, shooting the image and putting flame down is crucial. Series FIRE includes 28 images. They are presented in large scale neon lit light boxes. Some of the works are formed of several pieces that make the total number of boxes 41. 
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