To photograph a butterfly
Hilska-Heikkinen, Joel (2025-02-03)
Taideyliopiston Kuvataideakatemia
03.02.2025
Maisterin opinnäytetyö
tila-aikataiteet
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2025040423931
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2025040423931
Tiivistelmä
To photograph a butterfly is a Master of Fine Arts Thesis consisting of the artistic component presented at the Kuvan Kevät 2024 exhibition, and the written component provided here, both sharing the same title To photograph a butterfly.
The artistic component took the shape of an installation, consisting of a photobook, 12 prints, a video projection on tulle fabric, 32 diafilms, as well as rocks placed around the exhibition space. The photobook, handbound and 48 pages in length, featured 12 photographs and an essay. In the essay the themes of the work are explored through personal experiences and memories. This written component further examines, explains, and illustrates the arguments that were brought up in the essay, as well as goes into detail on how the installation presented at the Kuvan Kevät 2024 exhibition came about.
The thesis is conceptually based around the idea of how different types of knowledge affect the way one sees the world around them. This is explored through various examples concerning photography and language. How photographs and words are used in arts and sciences is another central theme of the thesis. Throughout the thesis, the agency of light is discussed in relation to the act of seeing as well as the act of photographing. The work begins from the act of photographing a butterfly and quickly expands from there. The thesis acts as an attempt at seeing from another perspective. To consider the point of view of another person, another being, but also that of the camera apparatus.
The artistic component took the shape of an installation, consisting of a photobook, 12 prints, a video projection on tulle fabric, 32 diafilms, as well as rocks placed around the exhibition space. The photobook, handbound and 48 pages in length, featured 12 photographs and an essay. In the essay the themes of the work are explored through personal experiences and memories. This written component further examines, explains, and illustrates the arguments that were brought up in the essay, as well as goes into detail on how the installation presented at the Kuvan Kevät 2024 exhibition came about.
The thesis is conceptually based around the idea of how different types of knowledge affect the way one sees the world around them. This is explored through various examples concerning photography and language. How photographs and words are used in arts and sciences is another central theme of the thesis. Throughout the thesis, the agency of light is discussed in relation to the act of seeing as well as the act of photographing. The work begins from the act of photographing a butterfly and quickly expands from there. The thesis acts as an attempt at seeing from another perspective. To consider the point of view of another person, another being, but also that of the camera apparatus.