Untitled (girl with two stripes), 2020

Mikael Siirilä  

Mikael Siirilä (b. 1978) is a darkroom artist living and working in Helsinki, Finland. Mikael translates intense looking into small, contemplative silver gelatin photographs. First, he collects minute observations from daily life, family and travels. Then, he recontextualises them in the darkroom with recurring questions on self, absence, presence and identity.

Mikael's pictures are observations in a strict sense, captured with minimal if any interference with the subjects. This ontological prerequisite positions his gaze as an outsider. The pictures are not the result of creative imagination or representation but rather a subjective recognition and response, self-expression.

"I make pictures I can become lost in, in an attempt to see more, feel more and live more."

Mikael still believes in the standalone picture, intentional and iconic. His photographs appear unapologetically poetic, quiet and meditative. Due to size, they ask the viewer to lean in and become aware of the image as an object. Fragmented, sometimes obscured and cropped subjects direct the viewer to feel presence outside the picture's edges.

Mikael works exclusively with the silver gelatin process. He uses overexposure, high acutance development and pure blue light to pronounce film grain and craft a graphic look. He uses dominating black elements and negative spaces to reduce subjects to their essentials and lean towards the abstract. The warm golden-ivory toning with tea helps the images feel familiar and approachable.

Mikael Siirilä is a member of the AllFormat Collective and The Finnish Darkroom Association.