What happens when a Painting Machine is put in charge of creating art? Leena and Kalle Nio’s first collaboration opens in EMMA 

The media preview of the exhibition will be held on Tuesday, 28 September 2021, at 10:00. The preview will take place simultaneously online and on-site at EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art. Follow the press conference via this link. 
 
The media premiere of Painting Machine will take place at 11:00 on site at EMMA. The performance lasts 30 minutes. Seats for the performance must be booked in advance. In addition, we have reserved the media an opportunity to observe Painting Machine rehearsals during week number 38. 

Enquiries, interview requests and reservations must be submitted by Monday, 27 September to: iris.suomi@emmamuseum.fi.

“Every successful painting is a miracle” – Leena Nio 

Leena and Kalle Nio have set out to challenge the rules of painting and artistry. With the help of magic, their installation Painting Machine is a playful investigation of art making and the sources of creativity. Will the Painting Machine produce new interpretations of traditional genres of art such as portrait, landscape or still life? 

The exhibition features a live performance every Saturday at 13:00, in which the audience can follow the creation of a painting. In the space of 30 minutes, the Painting Machine produces a new visual artwork that is incorporated into the exhibition. Between the live performances, the Painting Machine is on display in the gallery as an audiovisual painting installation.  

Leena and Kalle Nio’s installation investigates artisthood in today’s increasingly automated world. There is today a tendency to stress the brands of individual artists and the stories behind artworks, yet at the same time there is a drive to eliminate the human touch with algorithms. Although the Painting Machine is a mechanical piece of equipment, it is human in its own way. The process of producing a painting with the machine is surprising and uncontrolled, and every machine-made work contains unpredictable details and mistakes – just as human-made works do.

The installation by Leena and Kalle Nio fuses the practices of performance art with those of visual arts. Leena Nio is best known for her layered oil paintings that embody both material and illusory dimensions. She has works in major collections, such as the Finnish State Art Collection and the collections of the Sara Hildén Art Museum and the Saastamoinen Foundation. Visual artist and magician Kalle Nio is the founder of WHS, a Finnish visual theatre and contemporary art group of international renown. Famous for such shows as The Green, the group has performed in hundreds of theatres in over 30 countries. 

The live Painting Machine performances are included in the price of the museum ticket. Seats must be booked in advance. You can also ask EMMA staff about any unreserved seats. 

Painting Machine was produced in collaboration with the WHS group and will be included in the group’s tour programme. The 2021 theme at EMMA is the power of art. Leena and Kalle Nio’s Painting Machine uses an experiential performance to raise questions about the nature of art and the processes of artisthood.