I am Soyoung Chung from South Korea. I am an installation and performance artist based in Finland, but also specialized in curation and production in the field of contemporary art. By a great chance, I’ve got an opportunity to work in a work tryout as a Production Assistant at Nuori Taide (Lasten ja Nuorten Taidekeskus) for a couple of months. It was a great change not to only practice my art skills but also train my Finnish. 

I’ve worked for 6 hours from every Monday to Friday and my work usually started at 9am, yet it depended on my various duties! During my working period, I have gained countless valuable experiences through diverse projects, people and colleagues. Let me share with you some of my working experiences as a Production Assistant at Nuori Taide!

Workshop with Publics youth advisory board

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On 30th September evening, Nuori Taide 2023 Production group had a collaborative workshop with the PUBLIC Youth Advisory Board. In the workshop, we discussed ideas of activity for the upcoming Nuori Taide 2023 event and expanded our communication by getting to know each other more! Also, we had a short performance practice with the artist Laia Estruch and curator Irina Mutt! It was really funny and became one of my memorable experiences! 

Maximus Minimus exhibition

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On the 19th and 20th of September, I assisted Elina Katara (Executive Producer) and Anu Haikonen (Exhibition Master, Archive) to install the artworks for the Maximus Minimus exhibition. The Maximus Minimus exhibition started opening on 26th September at the culture centre Villa Arttu in Hyvinkää and it will last until 16th December this year.

There are various artworks created by young Finnish, but also international art hobbyists and it was amazing for me to see and install those intriguing works! Furthermore, we were constantly exploring and considering how to curate the environment for the numerous artworks. It was such an interesting challenge as well as a great practical experience! I am so glad that I was a part of building up the exhibition and we beautifully published the Maximus Minimus exhibition! Kiitos Elina ja Anu!

Tietotiistai: “What is NFT” and “Conceptual Art”

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I also had a chance to produce two contents of Tietotiistai. Tietotiistai (Knowledge Tuesday in English) is that Nuori Taide produces content about a certain subject regarding the field of Contemporary Art and uploads it on the Instagram story or Live on chosen Tuesdays, usually once a month.  

I would say this was one of the most instructive projects for me! While conducting the contents, it required tons of correct and reliable information in order to convey accurate knowledge. Hence, I had to research and refer to a lot of articles and media, and ensure whether it’s good enough to count on. 

NFT art

On the 18th of October, Tietotiistai: What is NFT was published and in the episode, I introduced and explained about NFT. Since NFT may not be a familiar subject for many people, I had to spend a lot of time on research so as to deliver neutral and correct information about NFT. I would say it was the biggest project I was in charge of during my working period!

The “What is NFT" episode was created with Gabriella Presnal together. Gabriella Presnal is a young Finnish-American artist residing in Finland and they participated as a Co-Creator of Tietotiistai: “What is NFT'' with me. Since it was a collaborative content with team-working, I’ve learnt countless things from them and the result turned out amazingly. I would reckon that it couldn’t be done this nicely without Gabriella’s help!

Conceptual art

On the 25th of October, Tietotiistai: Conceptual Art was published and in the episode, I explained what is Conceptual Art and Readymade Art through diverse examples of conceptual artworks and how to interpret Conceptual Art. I was so satisfied and glad that a lot of people found them interesting and informative out of both episodes! If you haven’t seen it yet, you can go check it out in the highlight on @nuoritaide Instagram!

Minitraining for young production assistant of the Nuori Taide 2023

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Every two weeks, Nuori Taide 2023 Production group has a meeting and on 13th September, I held a minitraining for them which was titled: How to deal with unexpected situations in the event!

I presented three unexpected incidents I have faced and explained how I dealt with the accidents along with tips. Members of the Production Group have written how they would do when those situations happen in the upcoming events. It was definitely interesting for me to read how different groups will handle the different incidents. Furthermore, even if it was minitraining I held, I also learnt a lot of things which I didn’t know before. 

Successful mini training experience led me to hold the same training for Nuori Taide and Artcentre’s staff, my own colleagues.

In brief, working as a Production Assistant at Nuori Taide was a tremendous experience for me! I definitely learnt so many practical things which I wouldn’t be able to learn from other places. Besides, I was so happy and enjoyed working with different young artists and colleagues. Whoever I met, everyone was affectionate and I got something to learn from them. Thank you so much everyone! 

Kiitos paljon kaikille. Se oli upea kokemus minulle. Olen oppinut paljon asioita ja arvostan teitä kaikkia. Kiitos Nuori Taiteen tiimille Annille ja Karoliinalle ja Taidekeskuksen muulle henkilökunnalle Päiville, Viville, Anulle, Elinalle ja Ninalle. 

3.11.2022 in Tampere

Soyoung Chung

Production Assistant

Click here to Publics Youth’s site.

Click here to the online exhibition guide of the Maximus Minimus exhibition.

Click here to see Tietotiistai episodes on Instagram highlights.

Click here to get to know Gabriella Presnal’s artistic works.