펜티 사말라티 Pentti Sammallahti


펜티 사말라티는 전통 흑백사진과 은염 인화의 장인으로 잘 알려진 작가다. 그의 작품은 21세기 사진 출판업계에 큰 영향을 끼쳤으며, 현재 스칸디나비아 출신 사진가들에게서 가장 존경받는 인물이다. 그의 작품 속에는 인간보다는 동물이 주인공으로 등장하며 이를 통해 비추어지는 세상의 아름다움과 따뜻한 감수성은 초자연적인 느낌을 자아낸다. 사진에 등장하는 동물들은 마치 사람처럼, 그의 사진 속으로 ‘떠돌듯이’ 걸어 들어왔다가 또 자연스레 사라진다는 점에서 흥미롭다. 그는 시각적 효과만으로 동물끼리 혹은 동물과 사람 사이에 이루어지는 무음의 소통을 상상하게 만든다. 그의 작업에는 물질적인 욕망보다 자연과 하나된 인간으로 행복을 느끼며 평생을 살아온 작가의 성품이 그대로 묻어난다.


1971년 첫 개인전을 연 이후 사말라티의 명성과 무대를 세계로 퍼지기 시작하여 1975년, 1979년, 1992년, 2009년 네 차례에 걸쳐 핀란드 국립사진상을 수상했다. 이로써 핀란드 현대사진예술을 대표하는 작가로 등극하였으며 핀란드를 넘어 미국과 유럽 등 세계적으로 사진 예술 전반에 큰 영향을 끼치며 활발히 활동하고 있다.


Whether taken in Turkey, India, or Italy, the photographs of Pentti Sammallahti are imbued with the cool northern darkness of his native Finland. The artist started taking photographs at age 11, inspired by his grandmother Hildur Larsson, a Swedish-born newspaper photographer. His black-and-white images have a supernatural stillness, showing nature eroded by civilization, but without setting the players against one another and without judgment. As such, animals frequently appear in his work, especially dogs. His documentary approach has influenced a generation of photographers, and earned him the respect of Henri Cartier-Bresson, who selected Sammallahti as one of his 100 favorite photographers.


Following his first solo exhibition in 1971, Sammallahti has won Finland's State Prize for Photographic Art in 1975, 1979, 1992 and 2009 as his reputation spread throughout the world. Sammallahti became a representative artist of Finland’s contemporary photography and his works have widely influenced the world of photographic art.  


B.1950, Finland




Education

1970  

University of Helsinki to study art history, musicology and mathematics




Awards 

2009  

State Prize for Photographic Art


2001  

Honorary Doctorate in Art, the Helsinki University of Art and Design


1995  

The Samuli Paulaharju Prise of the Finnish Literature Society


1992  

State Prize for Photographic Art


1991  

Finnish State’s 15-year artist’s grant


1989  

Uusimaa Province Art Prize


1986  

Daniel Nyblin Prize


1980  

Finnish Critics Association Annual Prize


1979  

State Prize for Photographic Art


1975  

State Prize for Photographic Art




Public Collections

Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, Helsinki, Finland

Helsinki Art Museum HAM, Helsinki, Finland

Finnish Photographic Museum, Helsinki, Finland

Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden

Museum Folkwang, Essen, Germany

Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, Germany

Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK

Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, France

The Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland

Pushkin Museum, Moscow, Russia

The Museum of Modern Art MoMA, New York, USA

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA

Amos Anderson Art Musuem (Helsinki/Finland)

Wäinö Aaltonen Museum (Turku/Finland) 

Rovaniemi Art Museum / Wihuri Foundation (Finland)

Kuopio Art Museum / Saastamoinen Foundation (Finland)

Finnish Museum of Photography (Helsinki/Finland)

Lahti Art Museum (Finland)

Pori Art Museum (Finland)

Kerava Art Museum (Finland)

Fotograficentrum (Örebro / Sweden) 

City of Visby (Sweden)

City of Örebro (Örebro / Sweden)

Brandts Klaedefabrik / Museet for Fotokunst (Odense/Denmark)  

Nice Audiovisuel (Nice/France) 

Ffotogallery (Cardiff/Wales)

Miskolci Galeria (Miskolc/Hungary)

The Parliament of Finland

The Finnish State Collection

City of Helsinki (Finland)

City of Espoo (Finland)

Vantaa (Finland)




SoloExhibitions

2020  

Photographers' Gallery , UK

Fotografiska Museum, SE

Gallery K.O.N.G., Seoul, South Korea


2019  

Maison Robert Doisneau,FR

Galerie Camera Obscura,FR

Nailya Alexander Gallery,US


2018 

Atelier l'Oeil Vert,FR


2017  

Wouter van Leeuwen,NL

Stimultania,FR


2016 

Gallery K.O.N.G., Seoul, South Korea


2015  

Nature Photo, Kuusamo, Finland

Orton Gallery, Helsinki, Finland

Maupetit, Marseille, France


2014 

Peter Fetterman Gallery, LA, USA

Blue Sky Gallery, Portland, USA

Photography Oxford Festival, UK

Galerie Wouter van Leeuwen, Amsterdam, Netherlands


2013  

Photographers' Gallery, London, UK

The House of Photography, Athens, Greece

F.O.K.U.S., Innsbruck, Austria

Nailya Alexander Gallery, New York, USA

Palazzo Borghese, Galerie Cembalo, Rome, Italy


2012  

photo-eye gallery, Santa Fe, USA

Les Rencontres d'Arles, France

GUNgallery, Stockholm Sweden

Museo Pablo Garballo, Zaragoza Spain

Galerie Camera Obscura, Paris, France


2011  

Museo Arte Contemporaneo (MACUF), La Coruna Spain

Centro Andaluz de la Fotografia, Almeria Spain

Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki Finland

Peter Fetterman Gallery, LA, USA

Nailya Alexander Gallery, New York, USA

Side Gallery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK


2010  

Retrospective at the Finnish Museum of Photography(Helsinki)

Images rares ou recentes, Box Galerie (Brussels/Belgium)


2009  

Twentieth pictorial work Huoneita·Chambres·Rooms (Opus 52) with the poet Caj Westerberg.

“Lumi”, GunGallery (Stockholm/Sweden)  “Selected Photographs”, Nailya Alexander Gallery (New York)


2007  

“Le bord du Monde”, Box Galerie (Brussels/Belgium)  “Fotografie", Galerie Albrecht (Munich/Germany)


2006 

Pro Finlandia medal. Staden - Kaupunki (Opus 45), made together with the writer Bo Carpelan, is chosen as most beautiful book of the year.

“Northern Light - Helsinki", Nailya Alexander Gallery (New York)


2004 

Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation's opening exhibition in Paris, for which Cartier-Bresson chooses 100 of his favourite photographers.


2003  

Henri Cartier-Bresson’s Choice, Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson (Paris) 

Pentti Sammallahti, Photo Gallery International (Tokyo)


2002 

Pentti Sammallahti, Galerie Camera Obscura (Paris)


2000  

Photo-Eye Gallery (Santa Fe/USA)


1995 

photographie et livres, Brandts Klaedefabrik/Museet for fotokunst (Odense/ Denmark) 

A journey through Wales, Ffotogallery (Cardiff/UK)


1996

Solo exhibition at Paris' Mois de la Photographie, leading to regular exhibitions at international photography events in Europe, Asia, America and Africa.


1992 

Pentti Sammallahti, Pieksämäki Cultural Centre  Retrospective, Poleeni (Pieksämäki/Finland)


1977  

First solo exhibition abroad at the Gotland artists' house in Visby.  

Galerie FGK (Visby/Sweden)


1976 

Uusia sarjoja exhibition at the Finnish Museum of Photography.


1974

Mullasta taivaalle exhibition at the Finnish Museum of Photography. Begins part-time teaching of photography at Lahti Art School (until 1976) 

and the University of Art and Design (until 1991).


1971  

First solo exhibition Kaupunki on painajainen. Invited to join the Imago 6 group, founded as a critical discussion group in response to what it sees as the ossified Helsinki Camera Club.