Hidden power
- Artist: Antti Ylönen
- Erected: 2021
N.B. An admission fee (25kr) is payable to enter the Castle Park.
Faith moves mountains
October 2021 was cold, rainy and wet, weather not fit for man nor dog. But for the Finnish artist Antti Ylönen, who comes from Oula in northern Finland, the flaming colours of autumn were a real advantage.
A year previously he had chosen the perfect location, one that would optimise the work’s visual impact - namely a hill sheltered by woodland.
After a lot of digging - both with shovels and large machines, a hollow was made in the side of the hill and a gigantic stone from the district around TICKON was brought to the site and lowered into place. All this didn’t pass without any problems. The hill was set and slippy, the stone large and unmanageable, and Antti Ylönen is an artist who makes high demands on both himself and his work.
But finally, it was possible to get the stone precisely where he wished it to be.
His intention was that the stone should look like it was just about to burst out of the hill. However as safety is paramount and curious members of the public might climb onto the stone, Antti Ylönen in consultation with the park’s board members, chose to secure the large stone in place with reinforced concrete. After the concrete was cast, this layer of material was made to appear natural again by covering it with soil, leaves and roots.
The title “Hidden Power” refers to both the power that the stone represents, but also to the stone as resembling an all-seeing eye.
Antti Ylönen
Antti Ylönen was born in Juva, Finland in 1957. He studied at the art schools in Tornio and Helsinki in Finland. Over the years he has worked on international projects in Spain, Turkey, India and on a number of occasions Japan, where his works include a sculpture for the Minamisoma Concert Hall. In addition to his sculptures he works with photography, which he describes as photographic painting. The main themes in his works are time and emotions, words that can well be used to describe his contribution to TICKON: a work that creates the felling that something is going to happen, but not knowing when it might occur.
