Relief from exhausting everyday life - Ami Lindholm’s media art exhibition at Oodi wants to comfort parents

Ami Lindholm: Oodi Mothers in Kuutio venue at Central Library Oodi, 6–30 August 2020

Ami Lindholm’s Oodi Mothers is a touch-based series of animated moments projected on the smart walls of the Kuutio space. With parenting and the tiring everyday life of a family with children as their theme, the cartoon animation features mothers who are exhausted until the viewer helps them. Cheered up, the mothers get the strength to cope once again.

“The work shows the broad audiences in Oodi what parenting is like. I want to make visible the exhaustion felt by mothers and the tiring life of families with children. The exhaustion caused by this year’s exceptional spring is felt by us all, and it can be a relief to see that others have not had it easy either. Viewers get to help parents hands-on: the baby is comforted by touching and the mother finally gets to sleep,” Lindholm says.

Research material for the piece was gathered from mothers and families, including in an online chat on Mother’s Day.

Ami Lindholm (b. 1982) creates animation art that can tell larger-than-life stories in a few minutes or even seconds. Her works often feature people whose lives oscillate between hope and despair. Lindholm graduated as animation director from the Turku Arts Academy in 2008. In the past few years she has focused on depicting parenting in her work. Her exhilarating graphic novel Vauvakirja (“Baby Book”) and short film Mother and Milk about breastfeeding portray the parenting experience in funny and touching ways.

The Media Cube Project brings media art to Oodi
Lindholm’s work is part of the Media Cube Project coordinated by regional artist Annika Dahlsten. The purpose of the project is to bring immersive media art into Oodi Library’s Kuutio space with its smart glass walls.

The project organised a workshop for six artists to acquaint them with the resources of the Kuutio space. The workshop leaders and curators, media artist Jukka Hautamäki and media producer Marko Tandefelt, then selected for implementation two of the ideas that emerged in the workshop.

The works by Ami Lindholm and Joonas Hyvönen are tailored specifically for the Kuutio space and its groundbreaking technological resources. Exploring topical themes in innovative ways, the immersive concepts centre on the interaction between viewers and the artwork. Joonas Hyvönen’s exhibition God’s Flat Earth Is Drowning was presented in July 2020. The production of the works is generously supported by Promotion Centre for Audiovisual Culture Finland AVEK and Arts Promotion Centre Finland.

The Media Cube Project is a collaboration between Arts Promotion Centre Finland, Oodi Central Library, Artists’ Association MUU, and University of the Arts Helsinki. Media Cube is part of the Arts Promotion Centre’s development programme for artistic expertise and mediation. The project’s specific aim in Oodi is to develop the presentation practices of media art in the library. The project coordinator in Oodi is special librarian Sanna Huttunen.

Opening hours 6–30 August:
Mon–Fri 8–20
Sat–Sun 10–18
Keskustakirjasto Oodi, Central Library Oodi, Centrumbibliotek Ode
Töölönlahdenkatu 4, Helsinki