Axel Straschnoy (born 1978) is a visual artist and filmmaker from Buenos Aires, based in Helsinki. His work deals with the social practices surrounding objects of knowledge.
Etsivä is both a part of and a film on ARS17, Kiasma Museum’s quinquennial exhibition. ARS17 deals with the effect of technology on our everyday life and on art in particular. TEtsivä narrates a visit to the exhibition. It is available as part of ARS17+—the exhibition’s online section—creating a distance between the experience of the show at the museum and its experience on the film: some people will see the film first and the exhibition later, some people will see the exhibition first, and some people will only see the film. Once the show has ended, Etsivä will remain as the most realistic documentation of what it was.
“Straschnoy considers what happens when our physical contact with material objects decreases or ceases altogether.”
Milja Liimatainen, ARS17 Hello World!