I am a Finnish visual and community artist based in Tampere. I work at the intersection of art, ageing and everyday aesthetics.
My artistic practice grows through encounter and close attention to everyday life. I attend to what often remains unnoticed and to the dignity that takes shape in ordinary situations.
Through artistic practice and research, I explore ageing, encounter and everyday aesthetics in relation to broader social questions.
Photo from the main Rollaattorimarssi event at Laikku in Tampere on May 9, 2025. Photo: Rollaattorimarssi archive. In 2025, Kartano worked as one of the facilitating artists in the Rollaattorimarssi sign workshops and helped organize an exhibition of the protest signs at Kuuselakeskus. Photo: Kanerva Kartano.
My thinking is multisensory and not limited to words alone. My practice grows from observation, encounter and philosophical reflection, and often begins with listening, wandering and noticing.
I explore the aesthetics of ageing and the sensitivity of everyday encounters. I am interested in what happens between people, places and situations, and in how perception, time and intention shape meaning.
A recurring question in my artistic research is: “Are we allowed to do this?” I use it to identify norms, routines and power relations in the everyday lives of older people and in eldercare. Rituals of Shadows is my metaphor for practices and assumptions that often remain unnoticed.
I am also interested in how increasing cultural diversity among residents and staff challenges established ideas of what is appropriate, familiar or aesthetically acceptable.
My practice is grounded in visual art and includes performative approaches to everyday situations. From these encounters, verbal, visual, musical or performative expressions may emerge through shared processes in the community.
In eldercare contexts, I seek to shift attention from disease-centred narratives towards the aesthetic and ethical dimensions of ageing, and to create spaces where people may become visible to one another.