Outi Pieski

Tate St Ives presents the UK’s first large-scale exhibition of work by Outi Pieski (Ciske-Jovsset Biret Hánsa Outi) (b.1973, Helsinki, Finland). Pieski is a Sámi visual artist whose practice is deeply connected to land. Working primarily with painting and installation, Pieski has gained recognition for her work which explores the spiritual relationship between humans and their environment and raises vital questions around traditional knowledge and Indigenous people’s rights. The exhibition at Tate St Ives presents Pieski’s figurative landscapes, photographs and prints alongside sculptural works, including a new installation titled Skábmavuođđu – Spell on Me!, 2024 which has been made especially for the show during her Tate St Ives residency at Porthmeor Studios in January 2024.

Pieski lives and works in Sápmi, the region in which the Indigenous Sámi live, which is today divided between the nation states of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Driven by the rugged landscape of her home municipality of Ohcejohka (Utsjoki), Pieski’s work acts as a dialogue between the everchanging natural environment of the area and its inhabitants. The exhibition at Tate St Ives presents several of her rarely exhibited acrylic landscape paintings which capture the region’s wild and transient scenery, including Rástegáisa lágalaš riektesubjeaktan II/Sacred Mountain Rástegáisa as a Legal Person II, 2018 which illustrates the mountain outside her home and Deatnu, máttožan/Deatnu River, Our Ancestor, 2018 depicting the river which runs along the border between Finland and Norway which has been fished by Sámi people for thousands of years. These paintings introduce visitors to the artist’s use of texture and space to explore culturally sacred places and demonstrate her early interest in the spiritual significance of materials.

Drawing inspiration from Sámi visual heritage, Pieski creates large-scale textile installations which feature tassels based on traditional clothing and reference ‘duodji’, an Indigenous craft practice marginalised in the wake of the colonisation of Sápmi. By practicing this often women-led way of making, Pieski seeks to strengthen sacred relationships between her work and her ancestral land, a concept known as ‘rematriation’. Made in collaboration with other Sámi women, these installations - which Pieski refers to as ‘three-dimensional paintings’ - destabilise the hierarchy between contemporary art and artisanal creative processes. Co-commissioned by Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm and the 13th Gwangju Biennale, the hanging installation Beavvit – Rising Together II, 2021 comprises groups of brightly coloured tassels which have been hand knotted using the traditional Sámi shawl crafting technique or duodji. Central to the exhibition at Tate St Ives is Guržot ja guovssahat – Spell on You!, 2020, a monumental hanging installation which is shown alongside the brand new work Skábmavuođđu – Spell on Me!, 2024.

As an artist and activist, Pieski uses her work to reconnect with elements of Sámi culture lost following Scandinavian colonialism. The Tate St Ives exhibition features works which form part of Máttaráhku ládjogahpir/Foremothers´ Hat of Pride, 2017-21, an interdisciplinary project she has created with Finnish archaeologist Eeva-Kristiina Nylander to explore the complex legacy of the ládjogahpir, headdresses traditionally worn by Sámi women. Following the arrival of the Christian Pietistic movement called Laestadianism in the 19th century, these horn hats were banned, and many ended up in collections outside Sápmi. Pieski and Nylander have researched and created an inventory of all surviving ládjogahpirs from archives, collections and libraries across Europe, resulting in a book and artworks including 47 eanemus ohccojuvvon máttaráhkut/47 Most Wanted Foremothers, 2019, a Pop-art inspired photo series of original hats dating from 1800-1900 and Lossa máttaráhkku/The Heavy Weight of the Foremother, 2021, a hand-sewn headdress made from contemporary materials but constructed using traditional methods. These works visualise the history of the ládjogahpir and open conversations about erasure of Indigenous people’s traditions.

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Notes 

Outi Pieski is curated by Anne Barlow, Director with Giles Jackson, Assistant Curator, Tate St Ives. With thanks to Helen Bent, Louise Connell, Arielle Etheridge, Sally Noall, and Tate’s conservation, design and technical teams.

Outi Pieski is supported by Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation. With additional support from the Outi Pieski Exhibition Supporters Circle, Tate Americas Foundation and Tate Members.

For press requests contact ella.baker@tate.org.uk or hele.rhys@tate.org.uk or call +44 (0)20 7887 8730. High resolution press images can be downloaded from Tate’s Dropbox.

Open Tuesday to Sunday 10.00 –16.20 during winter months; From 1 March opening times extend to Monday to Sunday, 10.00 - 17.20

For public information call +44 (0)20 7887 8888, visit tate.org.uk 

About Outi Pieski

Outi Pieski (b.1973) is a Sámi visual artist based in Ohcejohka (Utsjoki), Finland. Since graduating from the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki (2000), Pieski has exhibited internationally for over two decades, most recently at Gothenburg Biennial (2023); Gropius Bau, Berlin (2022); Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm (2022); the Biennale of Sydney (2022); Gwangju Biennale (2021) and the Venice Biennale (2019). Her work is represented in collections including the National Museum Collection in Norway, Moderna Museet, Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma and the Sámi Dáiddamagasiidna – Sámi Art Collections in Norway. Pieski is the recipient of awards including the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts Award (2017), and the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s Grand Prize (2020).

Related publications

Outi Pieski

Edited by Anne Barlow and Giles Jackson

Published by Tate St Ives in association with Tate Publishing.

Featuring contributions by Asta M. Balto, Anne Barlow, Pauliina Feodoroff, Niillas Holmberg and Dr Eeva-Kristiina Nylander.

Published March 2024, £19.99

Related events

Outi Pieski: In Conversation and Talk

10 February 2024, free with gallery ticket

Tate St Ives

In Conversation with Anne Barlow, 12.00 – 13.00

Talk with Outi Pieski and Eeva-Kristiina Nylander, 15.00 – 16.00

To mark the opening weekend of Outi Pieski’s new exhibition, join the artist in conversation with Anne Barlow, Director, Tate St Ives, followed by a talk about Rematriation by Outi Pieski and Eeva-Kristiina Nylander.

We Are Eagles: Indigenous Art and Regenerative Practice with Outi Pieski and Maree Clarke

28 April 2024, free

Tate Modern, Starr Cinema

A panel discussion on Indigenous contemporary art practice with artists Outi Pieski and Maree Clarke discussing regenerative knowledge and restoration of land and culture with Kimberley Moulton, Adjunct Curator, First Nations/Indigenous Art, Tate Modern.