Ilya Orlov | Functional Art

Functional Art

Helsinki International Artist Programme (HIAP), Helsinki, Finland

2020

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art. HIAP. 2020. Exhibition view.

The project takes as its starting point the widespread belief that art matters, has a use, or at least should be somehow functional. I decided to consider these ideas seriously, testing them practically so that they resulted in 11 artworks of two categories: “art aimed to save the world” and “art aimed to save the artist”. Together they comprised the show Functional Art at the Studio Emanuel, which I turned for HIAP Open Studios Week in November 2020 during my residency into a small but nevertheless two-story exhibition hall.

Works exhibited:

Red Flag.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Red Flag. 2020

Chair for a Muse.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Chair for a Muse. 2020.

Artist Clock.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Artist Clock. 2020.

photo: Sheung Yiu @sheungyiuphoto/HIAP

Black Square Icon.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Black Square Icon. 2020.

Anal Spider.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Anal Spider. 2020.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Kosuth Chair. 2020.

Kosuth Chair.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Smiley. 2020.

photo: Sheung Yiu @sheungyiuphoto/HIAP

Smiley.

Stone.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Stone. 2020.

Small Glass of 2020, Even.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Small Glass of 2020, Even.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Above-the-Sofa Painting. 2020.

Above-the-Sofa Painting.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Three Exhibition Guest Books. 2020.

photo: Sheung Yiu @sheungyiuphoto/HIAP

Three Exhibition Guest Books.

Functional Art Comments.

Ilya Orlov. Functional Art: Comments. 2020

photo: Sheung Yiu @sheungyiuphoto/HIAP

Drawings as Functional Art Comments:

Acknowledgements:

Miina Hujala and Arttu Merimaa for their kind invitation to HIAP; Anna Rawlings for collaboration, inspiration, and help; Sir Alec Guinness, John le Carré, Marcel Duchamp, Kazimir Malevich, Ilya Kabakov, Jesse Darling, Louise Bourgeois, Semyon Motolyanets, Jyrki Siukonen, and Joseph Kosuth -- for inspiration, as well as for some art devices I probably borrowed; Matthew Cowan for insight and humour; Jakub Bobrowski and Philipp Dochantschi for strong help and great funny vibe; Eleni Tsitsirikou, Paul Flanders and Stephanie Roiko for technical arrangements and all other support; Anna Škodenko for the help with photo documentation and nice company while doing it; Anastasia Artemeva, Kaisu Koivisto, Mark Maher, Minna Henriksson, Sezgin Boynik, Panos Balomenos, Effrosyni Kontogeorgou, Timo Tuhkanen and Aldo for smiles, grins, and [distant] hugs.

Special thanks: Art Foundation Merita.

All photographs by the artist except when otherwise mentioned on the image.

Functional Art show was supported by HIAP.