The ”Swamp man”

I have been working a life size sculpture with a title name “Swamp man”. I finished the sculpture in clay, and we built the mold already with Tomi Sinisalo from Taidevalimo, Säkylä, Finland. During the summer we are going to carry on the process of casting it into the bronze. The sculpture is part of my thesis in Turku academy of arts. The sculpture is based on poem i wrote.

Suosta nousee mies. Olemus nuorehko, keski-ikäinen korkeintaan.
Hiukset pitkät, kihartuvat. Parta ajamaton.
Vartalonsa hoikka ja riutunut, joskus elinvoimaa uhkuneet lihakset vielä paikoillaan. Kasvot uurteiset, ahavoituneet.
Mies tulee kohti, lähemmäs.
Tahmein askelin suon upottavuudessa, mustat linnut kannoillaan.
Katse kaukaisuudessa, jossain loputtomuudessa, hakien suon reunaa.
Takana suon aavaa, kitukasvuisia mäntyjä, kaukaisia pilviä, entistä.
Mistä mies on tullut, mihin menossa?
Kauanko maannut suon sylissä?
Uudelleen syntynyt, liekö kuollutkaan.

A man rises from the swamp. Being youthful, middle-aged at most.
Hair long, curly. Unshaven.
His body is slim and toned, the muscles that once drained of vitality are still in place. Face furrowed, scarred.
The man comes towards, closer.
With sticky steps in the submergence of the swamp, black birds on his heels.
Look in the distance, somewhere in infinity, searching for the edge of the swamp.
Behind the open marsh, stunted pines, distant clouds, the past.
Where did the man come from, where is he going?
How long have you been lying in the bosom of the swamp?
Born again, even dead.

Here are some photos to see it in clay.

Molding process with the master Sinisalo from Taidevalimo www.taidevalimo.fi

Molding process

New works

I have been pretty busy with the new works and studies, so i havent been posting much.
I had a solo exhibition in Pesula, Fiskars on May 2023, was part of the group exhibition in Turku on April 2023, i burnt some ceramics and finished some bronze statues.
some photos here to see:

Black Faunus, ceramics 2023
Sea Lady, ceramics 2023
Dystopia, bronze 2023
Dystopia detail, bronze 2023
Utopia, bronze 2023

Ceramic studies in Turku academy of arts

I have been studying last 6 months in Turku academy of arts, and I has been able to use the schools sculpture working spaces. Its a first time since the childhood I have been working on with the process of doing my sculptures in ceramic. A plenty of new tricks for making the clay sculptures to survive the burning process. Totally different story to create the ceramic sculpture comparing to make the mold from the clay sculpture. Interesting indeed!

Turku academy of arts is the oldest art academy in Finland and firsts documents of the art school are from 1708. The school as we know it now, has been founded in 1830.

Patina in progress

Here i use natrium sulfid to make the bronze darker. I first polished all the finished statue and then add it, heating the bronze to make the darker effect. I do this in many layers, little by little. After making the patina almost black, i start to polish the sculpture to bring the highlights more visible.

With this one, i first polished and fixed the casting errors, then added natrium sulfid and the nitrid acid mix to bring out the green patina which looks almost like a moss. Classic dark greenish bronze statue patina.

New bronze

Hello, i try to update this website during this new year 2023 more often. I will add my paintings section and also a shibari section as my online portfolio.

Here is few photos from the in progress sculptures i’ve been working during the late 2022. I sculpted them in clay using other natural materials like deer and sheep bones, branches etc. I made a cast on December 2022 and now they are casted in bronze. I will start to make the metal work done during the January 2023 and on Feb-Mar i will held a exhibition in Tatuata gallery Helsinki, stay tuned!

Sculptures in clay and natural material
Bronze casting december 2022, Jarno Kantanen
Raw bronze (directly from the mold). Now i will start a metal work, spending lot of time to finish the details.