performance artist, actor and researcher
I’m a Child, after all is the second artistic component of doctoral research “Children and Childhoods in Intergenerational Performance Art”. It took place in Uniarts Helsinki’s Theatre Academy in May 2023. I’m a Child, after all is a verbatim performance about childhoods lived in contemporary Helsinki, performed by nine child-performers live and seventeen on the videos.
At this age, we are expected to be either adults or children, depending on the person. If someone is too childish, they get judged for that, but you cannot be too mature, they also get judged for that. What are we supposed to do then? (12-years-old participant)
Concept, direction, videos, and research: Nora Rinne (Uniarts Performing Arts Research Centre)
Sound designer: Markus Heino (guest)
Performers: Emelie Demirdjian, Tyyne Haapkylä, Felix Jokela, Astrid Lahti, Maija Malkavaara, Saana Pasula, Iivo Puikkonen, Siiri Rämö and Silvi Traina
Performers on the videos ”Funny Face” & ”Adult Face”: Nishita Sahu, Noel Sinikallas, Nova, Alice Pastel, Albert Lamb, Nessa Daifi, Rayan Kafoor, Oliver Tervolin, Jessica Viitanen, Aarni Rinne, Noor Singh, Aale Rinne, Noah Jones, Vaishnav Rane, n.n., Pranil Palikhe, and Matilda Mayes
Technical assistants: Anzelm Nauha, Aale Rinne ja Aarni Rinne
Uniarts production team: AV support Jyrki Oksaharju / Sound support Heikki Laakso / Lighting support Anna Rouhu / Stage manager Vesa Rämä / Costume support Arja Nuppola / Props support Tarja Hägg / Producer Nina Numminen / Production coordinator Rosa Sedita / Poster and programme Jaana Fossrtröm
Child Service is a performance installation and first artistic part of my research project “Children and Childhoods in Intergenerational Performance Art”. The performance premiered in Mad House Helsinki performance art venue in November 2021 (premiere 13th Nov 2021).
Service has this meaning of assistance, benefit or taking care, but also the meaning of religious ceremony. In the service we pause and give our time and consideration to something outside of our ordinary daily tasks or entertainments. In Child Service – Lapsipalvelus I suggest that we, artists and spectators, give special attention to the idea of child and the children among us, childhoods lived, childhoods remembered, and childhoods imagined. There is no one message delivered through this service, no truth about the child, no sermon, but here we are serving our performance on children and childhoods, asking for the time and special attention of our audience for it.
Along with the transgenerational art and art making, the specific means and methods used in Child Service – Lapsipalvelus were verbatim techniques, imitation, and mimicry.
The artistic group: Nora Rinne, Joona Halonen, Katri Soini, Luca Sirviö and Ilmari Paananen, with child-artists Aale Rinne, Aarni Rinne, Oliver Tervolin and Okko Yli-Vakkuri.
Performance documentation photographs Saara Autere (2021). Photographs taken during a rehearsal. Reproduced with permission.
Performance languages English and Finnish.
Megaradiothingy / Megaradiohommeli is a radio feature that follows the day of two ten-year-old children living in Helsinki. The music in this audio essay is improvised and played by the children involved. The stories read are written by the children themselves. Megaradiohommeli is based on documentary material.
Megaradiohommeli was broadcasted by The Finnish National Broadcasting Company YLE 2019.
Texts, music and performance: Aale Rinne, Aarni Rinne, Hugo Laine, Väinö Laine.
Direction and dramaturgy: Nora Rinne and Pärttyli Rinne.
Sound design: Kasperi Laine.
Photo: Nora Rinne, 2019.
Production: YLE, Juha-Pekka Hotinen
Listen Megaradiohommeli in Yle Areena.
Biophobia video and sound installation was first seen in Glasgow Centre of Contemporary Arts in July 2015 during the UNFIX Performance and Ecology festival. In October 2015 Biobhobia was part of /teatteri.nyt festival in Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, Helsinki. Concept, videos, sounds and performance Nora Rinne. Visual consept in Kiasma together with Heikki Paasonen.
Big Blue Boy is a solo performance combining reading and video, and was seen in Cable Factory, Helsinki, during the Esitystaiteen markkinat live art festival in May 2015.
Through the actions and speech of little boys I examine the imaginary and kinesics connected to masculinity and power. Big Blue Boy observe those representations of masculinity we are at the same time idealizing and repressing. The performance text, written as a play script and performed by me, was based on audio recordings of family life and conversations between children and parents.
Concept, videos, text and performance: Nora Rinne.
A performance installation Performance Artist's Studio was performed in Kiasma gallery space during the three-weeks-long Performance Compost / Esityskomposti happening in /teatteri.nyt festival, Oct 2 - Oct 21, 2012. The video was on during the museum opening hours, and related to it there were several performances each week.
For Performance Artist's Studio Rinne videoed performing artists at work; making a new choreography, planning a performance concept or directing. The artists are choreographer-dancer Liisa Pentti, performance artist Saara Hannula, and theatre director Ossi Koskelainen. In a live performance connected to the video Rinne imitates the working bodies and utterance of these three artists. The video and the artist's body substantiate and perform the same situation in their own ways.
Performance installation Infantile Amnesia was performed in the Contemporary Art Museum Kiasma 10.3.-18.3.2012. There were three parts in this performance: installation with children’s shirts with educational texts written on them and videos of playing toddlers; live performance with spoken autoethnographic texts and art historical images; and, finally, a collective moment spectating through a window a young child playing outside of the museum.
Concept, videos and performance Nora Rinne.
Child performers Elvi Timonen and Kuisma Logren (children playing outside of the museum window).
Production Kiasma Theatre.
Dwellers ("Asuttajat") performance installation was open every day during the museum opening hours in Kiasma-theatre 8.10.–11.10.2008. Concept, videos, sounds, photos and performance Nora Rinne.