I’ve had month-long artist residencies four times in the last seven years, each in a different country. I wasn't sure in the era of Covid that we’d actually get here (my wife, a journalist, joined me for the first ten days here.) Artists love travel and encountering new landscapes, meeting other artists, and discussing new ideas. Genius does not spring forth sui generis. 

For me, a month like this offers time, not just to produce new work, but to adjust and refine the focus of my work and my working process. I'm primarily a traditional representational landscape oil painter. But it’s not convenient traveling with wet oil paintings on transatlantic flights so I work smaller, in watercolor, during a European residency. When a new watercolor excites my interest I’ll almost certainly develop the idea in my studio back in New York into a larger oil when I return home. One such example is shown here, a little beach maintained by Renja’s neighbor and made available to AARK artists. Perhaps here i should add that the Renja Lieno, artist and residency director together with the residency co-founder, her husband Bennku, seem to be doing everything in their power to make my stay here as stimulating and productive as possible. I’m planning the larger oil to be approximately 36 x 24 inches back in New York. This watercolor is a mere 16 x 12 inches.

Daniel van Benthuysen Refining the process AARK

With no specific goals in mind, I decided to spend my two weeks in solitary, as a sort of mix of holiday and retreat

What a strange year this has been. I was supposed to stay at AARK in March 2020 for two weeks but the pandemic changed those plans. My original idea was to get to know the sea a little better. I was painting a series of works for my exhibition called Loveboat. When I finally got to AARK in August, those paintings were already done.

With no specific goals in mind, I decided to spend my two weeks in solitary, as a sort of mix of holiday and retreat:  walking, looking at the sea, reading and sketching. After the first day I was feeling so lonely and so bored! And then I ran into Molly and her family in the hallway, and she invited me to dinner. We became friends straight away. Then Hanna-Leena and Jyrki arrived also, and suddenly the house was full of life. I still continued my routines and spent a lot of time alone, but I wasn’t lonely anymore.

To be honest, I really don’t like drawing but when I was staying at AARK, my favorite routines involved my sketchbook (that I normally don’t use ever). Every morning I would look out from my kitchen window and paint with watercolors what I saw. All the trees, the rocks on the parking lot, the pinecones…It was some sort of mindfulness practice for me. And then I would go outside by the sea and continue painting and drawing. There were so many amazing colors and shapes to be found! I really fell in love with the sea and the nature which felt familiar and strange at the same time. I loved the silence and all the animals I saw. I even loved that tiny snake that swam at the shore. I had never seen one before and was a bit scared of them before coming to AARK.

Spending time alone but also talking with other artists opened up new ways of seeing and thinking, even being. Thank you AARK and all the wonderful people!

When Renja invited us back in November for a week, Molly and I were so happy! I finally met Benkku and also Gill, who was staying there at the time. It was raining almost constantly, so we stayed indoors a lot. Since we rented a car, I was able to bring a lot of art supply with me. I was planning on mostly reading, knitting and eating but ended up working quite a lot, too. I started some tiny paintings that I finished later at my studio. I also did some linocut prints.

I really enjoyed seeing Korpo in different times of the year. Each time it was peaceful and beautiful in its own way. As a painter it is hard for me to work outside my studio. But at AARK I found new space for my thoughts, which is always important for an artist. Spending time alone but also talking with other artists opened up new ways of seeing and thinking, even being. Thank you AARK and all the wonderful people!

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Many of the artist that have been in our residency during these years, are right now having important shows around the world. Here you can discover some of them.

Marco Dessardo, AARK artist 2019

The Marco Dessardo is having an exhibition in Brussels right now: Plans Anti-Dérive, Quadriennale de la Fuite. Some of the works in that exhibition were created while his residency at AARK. He was here in 2019 as a part of the Between Island project. You can read about that project in the issue N26 of Korpo Bladet.

Link to Dessardo´s webpage: http://dessardo.com/

Chris Sheridan, AARK artist 2019 coming back in 2021

Chris Sheridan was here in 2019 and have the intention to come back in the fall 2021 together with his wife and artist Kate (if the conditions allow them). Right now Chris has a solo show: Rediscovering Silence: A solo show of new paintings inspired by a recent art residency in the Finnish Archipelago.

You can read about the genesis of that show in our Work In Progress Artist Blog here.

Link to Chris Sheridan Webpage: SheridanArt

Molly Balcom Raleigh, AARK artist 2020

Molly Balcom Raleigh was here with her family in the summer 2020. She has just published a book about the Baltic sea: Baltic Sea book - Iltämerikirja. You can find more information about the book here.

Link to Molly´s webpage: mollybalcomraleigh.com

Baltic Sea book - Iltämerikirja

Lilli Haapala, AARK artist 2019 and board member.

Lilli Haapala, artist in residency in 2019 and AARK board member is having an exhibition in Aboa Vetus & Ars Nova until the 8.11.2020: Blues

You can find more information about the exhibition in the museum´s webpage here

"The newest installation from artist Lilli Haapala, titled Blues, is part of her multiyear project where she examines the concept of utopia from different viewpoints. Haapala is fascinated with the birth process of dreams, and the relationship between impressions and reality".

Link to Lilli´s webpage: www.lillihaapala.com

Venla Blom, musician, performance.
Marjut Brunila, writer
Susanna Tuuliainen, poet, writer.
Marja Salo, research phd writing.

AARK keeps temporary closed from today 17.3. and is opening again when possible, earliest 13.4.2020. We follow the official policy of Finland in Corona times.

We wish Safe Times to all our artists and friends and fellow citizens around the world!

Our warmest regards, Renja & Benkku

Welcome to contact us any time: info at aark.fi

Happy New Year 2020!

Applications any time: info (at) aark.fi 

Residency is for all professional artists in all contemporary practices, art related professions, researchers - even in marine biology. 

Add your CV / Bio and www and a short motivation letter. Timetable, when do you wish to come. 1-3 months, even 2 weeks residency might be possible depending on timing. 

Here they are on Korpo island! Visual artists, painters, drawings, photography, sound - often working with with mixed media and installations. Giuliana Grippo from Buenos Aires, Rochyne Delaney McNulty from GB for 2 months, Chris Sheridan from Seattle, US for 2 months, and Sabeen Omar from Sri Lanka.

Wepbage created by Ubuntu Productions (Korpo)
Most of the pictures by Renja Leino  |  Drone and pictures of the studios by Ubuntu Productions (Korpo)