Marja Pirilä: The light in the Darkness

10.2.

The exhibition “The light in the darkness” by Marja Pirilä, represented at VB Photography Centre Jan 13th – Mar 26th 2023.

The earliest records of the effects of Camera Obscura were made in China BC. Since then, this phenomenon has intrigued scientists and researchers. In camera obscura, the light goes through a small hole into a dark space and forms a pictorial element of the outside world. Artists learned how to master the optical illusion created by the camera obscura in the 17th century and strengthened the effect by putting a lens on the hole. This was the start for a tool we know more commonly as a camera.

Photographic artist Marja Pirilä (b. 1957) has researched and captured the effects of camera obscura in her images for several decades. She transforms the space she works in as a camera. This ancient technique creates a new kind of world on the surfaces of the space. While being in the Camera Obscura, Pirilä captures the view with an ordinary camera. As the layers of interior and exterior combine, our interaction with our surroundings becomes more tangible. As this happens, also a third dreamlike reality and a world that is upside down takes shape onto the surface and brings a different light to our ordinary things.