Art Museum Meilahti will put on an exhibition presenting the work of Heta Kuchka, the young artist of the year 2006. It will be a revised version of the exhibition shown at Tampere Art Museum at the beginning of this year, including earlier and recent, never-before-seen works.

Heta Kuchka (1974) works mostly in photography and video. She deals with mundane everyday matters, daily surroundings and communication between people. Many of her works are based on role plays in which she casts herself and others. She is fascinated with life's arbitrariness and her hallmark is humour, even when the subject is grave.

Heta Kuchka was born and raised in Finland but her father was from the United States and she has US citizenship. In her latest piece What if… she constructs an alternative personal past using photographs and videos. What would Heta be like had she grown up in the United States? Kuchka interviews imaginary and real relatives, neighbours and friends who talk about her life in America.

The Young Artist of the Year is an event organised by the Tampere Art Museum and the City of Tampere and its purpose is to present young and talented artists and draw attention to what is happening in Finnish art. Heta Kuchka is the first young artist of the year in whose exhibition the Tampere Art Museum and the Helsinki City Art Museum have cooperated.

Lasipalatsin Mediakeskus Oy ©2001 25.9.2006