WHAT IS CRITICAL GALLERY? WHY WAS IT FOUNDED?

Critical Gallery is an art gallery based at Art House Turku.

It was founded by artists Minna Havukainen, Teemu Mäki and Susanna Vuorio, who have known each other for a long time, appreciate one another’s art, and share a strong sense of artistic connectedness.

Critical Gallery presents art, which doesn’t turn its back on everyday life, reality and what’s going on in society. Critical art asks, wonders and suggests: ”What’s really going on? What could the world become? What could we become? What do we want to be? How should we live? What is a good life?”. It encourages us to study social and philosophical topics as open-mindedly as possible, with critical doubt.

Art exhibited at Critical Gallery is not there to illustrate political views; instead it encourages us to study social and philosophical topics as open-mindedly as possible, with critical doubt.

Critical Gallery presents socially active art to people of all ages free of charge while creating a space for critical and diverse examination of common problems, challenges, visions and possible futures through art.

In addition to exhibitions, Critical Gallery will host debates and other events as well as provide outreach services. 

Critical Gallery does not collect exhibition fees or other expenses from the artists but rather aims to pay commissions to them instead. We think this is the way money moves in the right direction.

The Arts Promotion Centre Finland’s (TAIKE) Arts Council of Varsinais-Suomi and the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s Varsinais-Suomi Regional Fund have provided funding for establishing Critical Gallery.

A SPACE FOR CRITICAL ART 

Obviously, there is critical art also in art museums and galleries, but it is often more difficult to get it exhibited than it is for other forms of art. Museums may fear that they cause unwanted commotion or that an exhibition does not draw a large enough crowd. Galleries may fear that this sort of art does not sell and could even drive potential buyers away. Quite surprisingly, this kind of caution and unwillingness has increased over the last few years.

FEW GALLERIES HAVE ANY PROFILE. THIS ONE DOES.

There are approximately 120 galleries in Finland exhibiting professional art, but few of them adhere to any specific profile. This one does. 

Commercial galleries try to provide something for everyone or “to exhibit high-quality contemporary art as diversely and equally as possible.” This is understandable in that galleries that are run for profit do not want to rule out any customer groups.

Similar inconsistencies are also typical of artist-led galleries run by artists’ associations and art societies due to their leadership and members most often being drawn together by locality. Therefore, it is unlikely for them to have a particular profile. On the one hand this is fine, but on the other it is clearly a disadvantage.

We think that the emergence of galleries clearly anchored in specific art forms, contents, goals and perceptions of art would benefit each and every one – these places would have a comprehensible and memorable brand.

EXHIBITIONS CURATED BY ARTIST ARE NEEDED

The majority of exhibitions are either curated by professional curators or hand-picked and curated by gallery owners themselves. Alongside these, it is necessary to have exhibitions selected and curated by artists. 

There are indeed many artist-led galleries in Finland where decisions concerning exhibitions are made by working groups consisting either entirely or mostly of artists, but almost all of them rely on open calls and the ideal of impartiality. By contrast, the core group of Critical Gallery – currently Havukainen, Mäki and Vuorio – are directly responsible for the exhibition programme and content. 

PRINCIPLE OF FAIR ART

Critical Gallery does not collect exhibition rental fee or other payments but rather aims to pay commissions to the artists. We think this is the way money moves in the right direction.