PENTTII SAMMALLAHTI
Pentii Sammallahti (Helsinki, 1950) is a prominent figure of contemporary Finnish photography. His numerous travels in Hungary, Russia, Turkey, Nepal, Japan, Ireland and England form the basis of his photographic research, aimed at returning shots that describe the characteristic atmosphere of a place in a precise moment in a stimulating manner. He prefers vast, abandoned landscapes, often wintry and nocturnal, and pays particular attention to animals and their behaviours, from which he draws poetics that are entirely personal. He has always devoted special attention to searching for the ideal printing technique in order to get a book of art/photography whose quality is equivalent to that of an original print. He taught at the Academy of Art and Design of Helsinki for 17 years. He has published a number of books, including Archipielago (Opus 41, Helsinki, 2004). Since the 1970s he has exhibited above all in Finland, Sweden, the United States and France, in both museums and private galleries.