Jussi Juurinen

Artist’s Statement

Jussi Juurinen

As an artist I have concentrated in works realised by the methods of printmaking. Over time, relief printing in general and woodblock printmaking in particular have become my most meaningful ways of expression. I find the content of my artwork from things familiar to me from my past. A shirt that belonged to my grandfather, my grandma’s house from my childhood, the landscapes of my daily itinerary, or the games I played as a boy are examples of the starting points of my working process.

I work slowly and ponderously. The working process is further slowed down by the toil of the woodblock printmaking technique combined with imagery or ideas purposefully selected because of their unsuitability for the technique. The slow process helps me get acquainted with my ideas and creates an analogy between my works and their subject. Through the slow process my works get a chance to grow in their own time, thus gaining a life of their own as the process goes on, and starting to refer to things outside their point of origin.

My ideas of imagery stretch the possibilities of the technique. Because of this, my works seldom follow the standard form or serial order of printmaking. My way of working and the formal nonconformity of my artwork have created a sidetrack exploring the concept and definition of printmaking. Through my work I contemplate the possibilities of combining the different methods of visual arts and expand the definition of printmaking towards spatial and installation art.