Salla Tykkä’s latest video work Europe – Europa (2020) is on view at Södertälje Konsthall in Sweden until 7 May.

In Europe – Europa, an ageing male writer, the artist and her alter-ego all come together. The piece is based on real life events, when Tykkä met the writer in her youth, an encounter that was later used as material in the man’s creative writing. In the film Tykkä returns her gaze back onto the writer, unveiling the artist’s position through the gaze of the camera.

In spring 2022, Tykkä’s video piece Lasso (2000) will also be on view at the Konsthall. In Lasso the main character is played by Saija Lentonen, the same actress as in Europe – Europa. Lasso is in many ways an iconic artwork around the female gaze. How has the subject matter of power and gender shifted over the course of two decades?

Image: Salla Tykkä, Europe – Europa, 2020, video, stereo sound, 45 min