Vieraalla maalla (In a Foreign Place)

• Photographer
  Emilia Moisio, United Kingdom
• Studio
  Emilia Moisio

The on-going 'Vieraalla maalla (In a Foreign Place)' project is induced
by personal experiences of cultural misunderstandings that affect the
way we perceive images and the world around us. In this fabricated
outlandish world traditional Finnish, Carelian and Sami customs and
practices have been given a slightly odd twist. Not deviating beyond
recognisability for recipients with the relevant cultural knowledge, the
scenes toy with proverbs, phrases and obsolete customs, rendering
the images absurdly strange to a viewer unfamiliar with the cultural
heritage. Drawing from personal experiences of cultural alienation and
misunderstandings, and my Carelian origin, the work invites the
recipients to strive to decipher and locate the depicted world, thereby
denoting the arbitrary nature of our interpretations of images so easily
taken for granted.

• Awards
  2014 – MA Photography: London College of Communication, University of the Arts London, UK 2009 – 2012 BA (Hons.) Photography: University College Falmouth, UK 2014 The Source-Cord Prize: the project 'Vieraalla maalla (In a Foreign Place)' shortlisted 2014 Moscow International Foto Awards: Honorable Mention in Culture category for the winning entry 'Vieraalla maalla (In a Foreign Place)' 2014 LensCulture: Artist's profile with selected projects featured 2013 Silvershotz Folio 2012: Project Missing Moments featured in the Silvershotz Folio 2012 portfolio selection 2012 International Fine Art Photography Competition: Juror Award of Merit in People / Portraits category for the winning entry 'Louhi' 2012 The South West Graduate Photography Prize 2012: the project 'Missing Moments' shortlisted 2012 International Photography Awards (IPA) 2012: Honorable Mention in Fine Art - Portrait category for the winning entry 'Vieraalla maalla (In a Foreign Place)'