Retretti

If you spend any length of time in Savonlinna, it will soon occur to you that you're in the middle of nowhere. For example, the produce here is of poor quality and so the food is generally terrible, on Saturday every shop closes by 6 pm, and on campus they TURN OFF the internet so that it's not available at night (why the fuck would you turn it off?! What difference could that make?).

So, after you've gone to the opera festival (or not gone because you're still broke, like me), and are yearning to see another big attraction, you have to leave town. Fortunately, there is a little train in town which will take you to Retretti.

Retretti is one of the largest art museums in the Nordic regions. Also, in my opinion it is the coolest museum EVER. Most of the museum is located underground, in caves. Artists sometimes create special installations for the space. The darkness of the cave combined with shallow pools of water makes a splendid backdrop for imaginative, fantastic sculptures.

The current installations were sculptural works created by Heli Ryhanen and Matti Kalkamo, which evoke feelings of being in a dream state or another realm of consciousness. Photography is not allowed, but I managed to snap a couple shots without flash on my phone...

Here's one.

I wish I could show you the installation of spirits being carried in boats on a river to the land of the dead. My favorite part was walking up and taking a hanging flash light, to shine it down upon...skeletal angels, writhing in the water.

OK, one more photo.

A chandelier of...? I don't know, exactly. Translucent bodies, rotating slowly.

There were paintings above ground, the current exhibition focused on artists who were married to each other and the effects they had upon each other's art and lives.

Theme aside, I was particularly interested in seeing the portraits. In my opinion, Finnish portraiture is rather unique in the sense that flaws, ordinariness and even ugliness are not hidden. Finnish portraits are candid and frank, rather than polished. Whereas in other places, for example Italy, an artist would typically paint their patron so that they would appear more attractive than in real life, Finnish artists just paint folk. I have seen paintings of ordinary people come from other nations, yes, but they always have a smoothness and an evening-out of asymmetrical features that isn't present in Finnish art.

I could go on, but I think you get the point. Retretti is worth visiting!

Also, please don't take these photos. I shouldn't even be showing them to you!!