In the picture everything is grey, it’s raining.
The room is pale and there’s a pool in the corner. Clouds can sometimes be seen through the windows.
And what I thought was private is architecture.
Architect Helmi Kajaste writes in her essay collection Rakenna, kärsi ja unhoita: “the borders created by architecture give many the safe shelter of flat and home. They keep out the chaotic world and say: Here is a place where you can rest a while.”
She also writes that, “although a building’s monumental style can indicate forever, no building lasts forever.”
I was living in a strange place is a performance about the history of shared and private spaces, time, architecture, and home. The work is in dialogue with Kajaste’s essay collection and, influenced by it, researches what kinds of spaces and architectural worldviews our lives are formed by. The working group consists of Henriikka Himma, Kaisa Karvinen, Julia Lappalainen, Nicolas Rehn, and Sofia Palillo.
How to bring someone with you to a place where you were and can no longer enter?
Content warnings:
Flashing lights, loud sounds, theatrical smoke, construction and cement dust.
Henriikka Himma works as a dramatist and convener in radio and the performing arts. Himma researches the scope of adaptations in performing arts, and lives with her family in a rental flat between a mall and a forest.
Kaisa Karvinen is an architect and researcher who lives in two cities.
Julia Lappalainen is an actor and creator whose family has lived in Helsinki for five generations.
Sofia Palillo is a Kumpula-based light and space designer who has created shows in a ski hall, a landfill, a neoclassical manor, a gunpowder magazine, a public swimming hall, and a theatre.
Nicolas ”Leissi” Rehn is a musician, composer, sound designer, and performance artist who lives with his family in a rental flat in Helsinki.
Dramaturge, author, convener: Henriikka Himma
On stage: Kaisa Karvinen, Sofia Palillo, Julia Lappalainen, Nicolas Rehn, Henriikka Himma
Light and space designer: Sofia Palillo
Sound designer and musician: Nicolas Rehn
Architect-researcher: Kaisa Karvinen
Supported by: Finnish Cultural Foundation, Arts Promotion Centre Finland, Samuel Huber foundation, Iida Ahlberg foundation, Frame Contemporary Art Finland, Finnish Association of Architects SAFA
The work is co-produced by Circus Maximus.
I was living in a strange place is part of Kulkue, a joint project between three Finnish art festivals. ANTI – Contemporary Art Festival (Kuopio), Hangö Teaterträff (Hanko), and Baltic Circle (Helsinki) create an exceptionally large-scale series of Finnish co-productions along with related tours. The project’s central goal is to promote the accessibility of the festivals and to prolong the life cycle of the performances. The project is financed by the Finnish Cultural Foundation.