Transcendence 2021
At the time, it had to be that exact place and space – no other. As one of key crossroads for the residents in the city of Sundsvall, its main bus station attracted me like a moth to a flame. I photographed and photographed and photographed. I searched for a tangible story, but kept falling into spontaneous shooting streaks and walked in small circles until my head was spinning. It all felt so random back then. While investigating the material later, I realised it was a personal experience beyond the normal. I became part of the scenery by photographing what I felt like.
”In his debut book Transcendence Mikko Kerttula observes the everyday events at a bus terminal of a small Swedish city of Sundsvall. By using reflections, bouncing harsh light and stains in glass surfaces Kerttula creates abstract and mirage-like portraits. Whether rushing by the station or patiently waiting for their bus to arrive, the people are portrayed almost as apparitions, captured in midst of transformation. The work subtly turns the mundane into something extraordinary, mysterious and even unearthly.” —Kult Books
Staple-bound book in a loose, screen printed board covers
64 pages
38 black and white photographs
Digital printing
22,5 x 28 cm
Limited edition of 100 copies, all signed and numbered by the artist
ISBN 978-91-984059-6-5
Sold out by publisher.
Published by Kult Books, Stockholm / Sweden
kultbooks.com
Transcendence also featured by:
Collector Daily
GUP Magazine and GUP Library: a weekly suggestion of their favorite photobooks
The book is part of the following collections:
Splinters of Järvelä 2016
Prologue
There is fresh snow on the ground as I make my way downtown. A passing serene street after another. The camera hangs loosely around my neck, ready for action. But nothing gives. Streets stay quiet. Occasional figures pass in distance, only to disappear from my reach to the white horizon. Some people never seem to leave the place. They are rooted in this town. No need to search for more, happiness is already here. Yet, I left. Flashes from long school walks surface. Those nostalgic moments are now fragments faintly thumbing the minds back. Memories lost in focus and in time. I notice whispering to myself, “you can never go home again”. Then the wind makes a puff of snowflakes dance and I take the first photograph of Järvelä.
—
Case bound artist book with a black linen hardcover and photo dust jacket, mid-grey endsheets
Premium Paper, matte finish 148gm
88 pages
51 colour photographs
Digital press
20 x 25 cm
Limited edition of one, signed and numbered by the artist.
Self-Published with Blurb® by MK. in 2016
The production of this work was supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation`s Päijät-Häme Regional Fund
Rising Land 2016
❡Read the coast and dream how the land rises from the past myth of ice and age. Here, in the calm nest of humanity, the Earth moves to reach the stars until the end of time…
—
Perfect bound artist book with a softcover and open back
Munken Lynx uncoated 150g matte paper
88 pages
47 black and white photographs
Digital Fine Art inkjet printing
30cm x 42cm
Limited edition of one, hand bound, signed and numbered by the artist.
Self-Published by MK. in 2016
You can read more about this work here
