election artist
i have adopted the role of the ‘election artist’ for the finnish parliamentary election 2023 and the finnish presidential election 2024. the aim of the project is to document the election across different parts of the country, and to investigate the role of empathy in political dialogue and culture, in a moment that feels like a critical turning point in the history of finland, the world, and the planet.
we need empathy more than ever before to solve the increasingly complex challenges we face both as a humankind and as a planet, and to learn to understand the experiences and perspectives of our fellow humans as well as other species and beings in a deeper and more meaningful way. at the same time research shows that the global empathy deficit grows rapidly.
as the election artist 2023-24 i will document the debates, campaigns, and conversations, engage candidates and voters alike, gather material to create a growing archive and a series of new artworks in response. i will not subscribe to a specific political ideology or agenda, nor aim to advance the cause of any single party or candidate, or favour or single out any values or opinions over others. my mission is only to advance the cause of empathy, and i will focus on examining it and understanding it during the election and in the current political conversation and culture.
in march 2023 i embarked on an ambitious weeklong 3,408 km journey through the 13. finnish electoral districts to document the mood across the country in the final week before the historic 2023 parliamentary election. on my journey i met with as many different parties, candidates and voters / non-voters as possible - 120 people so far - to listen to their stories, capture their experiences and to try to understand their values and opinions.
my journey continued in january 2024 in the lead up to the finnish presidential election. on monday 15th january 2024 i began my second tour as the election artist to visit each of the 13 finnish electoral districts again, this time expanding my route into new cities and new communities to document how the election looks and feels across the country. travelling via trains, ferries, busses, cars and planes over the course of the next month i will journey across the 4335 km long route espoo-helsinki-rovaniemi-sodankylä-kemijärvi-kuusamo-kajaani-pieksämäki-hankasalmi-joensuu-helsinki-hämeenlinna-kotka-helsinki-salo-helsinki-turku-maarianhamina-turku-rauma-helsinki-lempäälä-kokkola-helsinki.
after the finnish election cycle my journey will continue beyond the borders of finland in the lead up to the europarliamentary election 2024, the upcoming UK general election 2024 and the US presidential election 2024 to examine the current state of western democracy and electoral systems.
the concept of the 'election artist' is borrowed from the united kingdom where i live. since 2001 the speaker’s advisory committee on works of art has commissioned an election artist ‘to create unique works of art which record each UK general election, for future generations to be informed and inspired by.’ (UK parliament) Inspired by this tradition, i want to examine the meaning of the role in my homeland.
the 'election artist' project (2023-24) extends my existing body of work and research focused on investigating the relationship between empathy and power. the work began in 2018 through a collaboration with the parliament of finland; ‘empatia ele: empathy tools for politics’ (2018-19), based on a unique partnership with a group of six elected members of parliament from five different political parties.
follow the project on www.electionartist.com and instagram @ennikukka.studio #electionartist