Aino Kannisto Photography

January 30, 2009 8:06 AM

Aino Kannisto's beautifully composed photographs of intimate moments feel more like film stills than portraits. [via]

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posted by grapefruitmoon (19 comments total)

i think her work is absolutely fantastic. Very delicate, very intimate. I'm in love.
posted by Heliochrome85 at 8:17 AM on January 30

Why is every photo titled "Untitled" then with a title in parentheses? Does that mean the artist didn't give it that title?
posted by BaxterG4 at 8:23 AM on January 30

"I'm eatin' walnuts an' lookin' moody!"

"Now I'm takin' a dump and readin' a magazine an' lookin' moody!"


eh...
posted by stenseng at 8:29 AM on January 30

those make me all tingly!
posted by billybobtoo at 8:49 AM on January 30

These are some great portraits.

My favorite one is "Untitled," with "Untitled" coming in at a close second.
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 8:51 AM on January 30

One in five is amazing, and I'm glad you shared. The other four look like stock photography.
posted by klangklangston at 8:54 AM on January 30

These are OK, but with the same mopey facial expression in every single one they don't work as a group. Unless the message is "DEPRESSED WOMAN IS DEPRESSED" which I guess it could well be.
posted by DU at 8:54 AM on January 30

"feel more like film stills than portraits."

I agree, the photos are carefully composed and the woman's expressions are candid.
posted by rageagainsttherobots at 9:47 AM on January 30

Oh wow, beautiful. The flowers on the bed one really gets me.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 9:59 AM on January 30

They do feel like film stills. And they are untitled. And, perhaps because of that, they feel a lot like Cindy Sherman's iconic Untitled Film Stills, only easier. At first they were arresting, and then, somehow, they just became slick.
posted by The Bellman at 10:29 AM on January 30

Ah, and the artist is the model in all of the pictures... Check.
posted by The Bellman at 10:35 AM on January 30

I like these because they are carefully staged, planned, and composed yet feel very natural. I think that is extremely hard to pull off. A lot of this kind of narrative work is very highly produced/styled/lit but these seem effortless despite the obvious attention to detail. Thanks for posting.

Why is every photo titled "Untitled" then with a title in parentheses? Does that mean the artist didn't give it that title?

I think for this kind of work giving it a title and spelling out your intentions kind of ruins it. Creating a narrative visually is more about what you leave out than what you put in, you have to leave room for people fill in the blanks themselves or otherwise it just becomes an illustration. The "Untitled (short description)" is because you need some way to tell them apart when you have a whole body of work that's purposefully all untitled.

Also Bellman beat me to it, but it's an obvious reference to Cindy Sherman.
posted by bradbane at 10:49 AM on January 30

Looks like Philip Lorca DiCorcia too.
posted by xammerboy at 11:00 AM on January 30

I'm sorry, I don't really see it. Some of them (a lot of them?) look like the kind of stuff you get when you search for something to use on a Powerpoint slide, like Untitled (Black Board), 2003.
posted by paddbear at 11:23 AM on January 30

"I agree, the photos are carefully composed and the woman's expressions are candid."

When did "candid" start meaning "horribly melancholy". I, for one, smile quite a bit, even when I'm alone.
posted by Parannoyed at 11:28 AM on January 30

Regarding "moodiness/depression/horrible melancholy":

She's Finnish. Add a bit more movement and roughly three lines of dialogue and you have an Aki Kaurismäki film.
posted by Anything at 11:58 AM on January 30 [1 favorite]

There's an Overlook Hotel feel to these photos.
posted by cazoo at 4:20 PM on January 30

That "candid" expression constitutes smiling in Finland, at least this time of the year.
posted by keijo at 8:34 PM on January 30

this is one of the coolest things I've ever seen on Metafilter.
posted by Lipstick Thespian at 8:03 PM on January 31