Jenna Jauhianen

Artist biography

Jenna Jauhiainen is an artist, freelance writer and researcher, as well as occasionally a producer, curator and communications professional. Jauhiainen's work is often experimental, multidisciplinary, playful and critical. They have worked in the art and culture field in various roles since 2008.

"As a curator, I am first and foremost a conversation partner, an enabler and a verbaliser. I also use a curatorial approach in my artistic work, as I enjoy collaborating with and facilitating the work of artists, researchers, and others. It is important for me to make space for new voices, as well as to collaborate with those for whom art and making art are not necessarily so familiar.

I think the IT GIRLS collective I curated for Ars Pori is an excellent example of an expressive and even revolutionary cultural phenomenon, whose members @pikakahvimemegirl, @princessskimberly and @yassifyfinland constantly memefy new perspectives for the Finnish political and social discourse. In my opinion, IT GIRLS' place is perhaps not so much in the art world, but in popular culture and especially on the internet. However, it is interesting to see how the art made by IT GIRLS is received, how it becomes contextualised and how it will look years and decades later in an art historical framework.”

About a year ago, Jauhiainen curated a special issue of the cultural magazine Mustekala called Doing Differently, where you can find a collection of @pikakahvimemegirl's memes translated into English: https://mustekala.info/teemanumerot/doing-differently/