Janne Raappana
Basic information
Kuvataiteilija
Artist’s Statement
the so-called. DEPRESSIONISTIC Manifest 2023
I became an artist because I want to use art as a way to understand and transform the world. For me, art is a means to explore the contradictions of existence – the tension between humanity and nature, consumption and consciousness, sound and image, spirit and matter. Through art, I try to examine why humans have become alienated from nature and from themselves, and how commercialism reshapes our perception of reality.
My work is based on the dialogue between sound and image. I separate nature and the city but bring them together through sound art and abstract painting. They complement and mirror each other: the industrial and consumer society’s noise becomes a human-created “sound pollution,” while my nature soundscapes reveal a longing for something original. My abstract paintings act as emotional and cognitive maps, where realism and abstraction coexist.
The foundation of my artistic practice lies in a critical view of capitalism and pop culture, as described by Theodor Adorno. Consumer culture turns humans into passive beings drowning in their own societal noise. Martin Heidegger’s idea of Dasein—the moment of being aware of one’s existence—is also central: the act of creation is a state in which one faces pure being, free from masks and illusions. Voltaire’s L’Ingénu also resonates with me, showing how nature can reflect humanity itself.
What matters most in my art is the holistic experience. I want my works to affect the viewer deeply—at the edge between thought and emotion. A human is only a biological organism without a soul, but art can create the illusion of connection to something greater. The immaterial nature of sound, the timelessness of the image, and the sense of mysticism create psychological motion—both within the mind and within society. This motion mirrors herd behavior, industrial acceleration, and the frenzy of consumption—often at the expense of nature and our planet’s wellbeing.
My Depressionistic Manifest was born from a need to combine hope and despair. My sound art and abstract paintings express the inner landscape of the human mind—our shared sorrow and despair, yet also our potential for change. As Jean-Luc Godard said, “Art is not the reflection of reality, it is the reality of reflection.”
In my art, I deal with peace, hope, and suffering simultaneously. I seek to challenge the status quo, to dismantle divisions, and to remind that genuine connection arises through perception and emotion—not through consumption or technology. Sound and image, human and nature, reality and abstraction form a dynamic movement in which the universe observes itself through us.
My art is an invitation to pause, listen, and see: true reality lies closer to the forest than to the factory.
I became an artist because I want to use art as a way to understand and transform the world. For me, art is a means to explore the contradictions of existence – the tension between humanity and nature, consumption and consciousness, sound and image, spirit and matter. Through art, I try to examine why humans have become alienated from nature and from themselves, and how commercialism reshapes our perception of reality.
My work is based on the dialogue between sound and image. I separate nature and the city but bring them together through sound art and abstract painting. They complement and mirror each other: the industrial and consumer society’s noise becomes a human-created “sound pollution,” while my nature soundscapes reveal a longing for something original. My abstract paintings act as emotional and cognitive maps, where realism and abstraction coexist.
The foundation of my artistic practice lies in a critical view of capitalism and pop culture, as described by Theodor Adorno. Consumer culture turns humans into passive beings drowning in their own societal noise. Martin Heidegger’s idea of Dasein—the moment of being aware of one’s existence—is also central: the act of creation is a state in which one faces pure being, free from masks and illusions. Voltaire’s L’Ingénu also resonates with me, showing how nature can reflect humanity itself.
What matters most in my art is the holistic experience. I want my works to affect the viewer deeply—at the edge between thought and emotion. A human is only a biological organism without a soul, but art can create the illusion of connection to something greater. The immaterial nature of sound, the timelessness of the image, and the sense of mysticism create psychological motion—both within the mind and within society. This motion mirrors herd behavior, industrial acceleration, and the frenzy of consumption—often at the expense of nature and our planet’s wellbeing.
My Depressionistic Manifest was born from a need to combine hope and despair. My sound art and abstract paintings express the inner landscape of the human mind—our shared sorrow and despair, yet also our potential for change. As Jean-Luc Godard said, “Art is not the reflection of reality, it is the reality of reflection.”
In my art, I deal with peace, hope, and suffering simultaneously. I seek to challenge the status quo, to dismantle divisions, and to remind that genuine connection arises through perception and emotion—not through consumption or technology. Sound and image, human and nature, reality and abstraction form a dynamic movement in which the universe observes itself through us.
My art is an invitation to pause, listen, and see: true reality lies closer to the forest than to the factory.