Anechoic Chamber Episode 14: Jukka Siikala

Welcome listeners to the 14th episode of Anechoic Chamber, once again bringing you exclusive insights from the margins of art and culture. Our guest for this edition is the Finnish visual artist Jukka Siikala. Working in the media of painting, photography and video, and now narrative fiction as well, Siikala has a highly distinct style noted for its focus on psychosexual material, the presentation of which walks a tightrope between eroticism and horror. Though sharing some creative DNA with similarly inclined artists like Hans Bellmer, Siikala’s work much more clearly shows the effects of the use and abuse of digital technology: for example, many of his painted portraits are marked by photorealistic approximations of the pixelation or visual glitches that accompany partially downloaded video clips. As such, his artwork successfully reveals the essence of a 21st century wherein pornography is often more readily available than running water, and where ephemeral obsessions multiply more quickly than can often be studied or documented. His refusal to comment on the moral or ethical implications of such a world actually increases the dreamlike potency of his work. He has personally suggested that much of his material opens onto a world in which [quote] “the female is a fetishized platform and the male is almost non-existent.” Whether you find this to be a desirable state, or the stuff of nightmares taken from the pages of J.G. Ballard’s fiction, we submit that Siikala’s work will cause strong visceral reactions. Needless to say, listener discretion is advised for those uncomfortable with the subject matter mentioned above. background ambience from Jukka Siikala's "Human Porridge" DVD soundtrack; and additional unreleased ambiences from Siikala and TBWB artist links: www.siikala.com (NSFW) Anechoic Chamber links: donate via Paypal - tbwb@protonmail.com general host activities: www.thomasbeywilliambailey.net