Suomen Pimiötaiteilijat RY

FI

The Finnish Darkroom Association is a non-profit association founded in 2016 with the purpose of ensuring the preservation of analog photography.

The mission of the association is to share and develop the know-how related to darkroom printing in Finland, to facilitate the networking of individuals and organisations in the photography field and to create international cooperation. Anyone interested in analog photography can join as a member.

Mörk is a fully equipped, professional black and white darkroom built and maintained by the association located in The Finnish Artists' Studio Foundation's Vallila Studio Centre in Helsinki.

The association actively organises courses of all levels in black and white printing and special techniques, such as collodion wet plate process and daguerreotype. It also produces various events and exhibitions, such as the Helsinki Darkroom Festival, which will be organised for the first time in the beginning of 2022 at the Museum of Finnish Photography.

BOARD 2021-2022

Katri Lassila, president
Jenni Haili, vice president
Natalia Kopkina, treasurer
Katri Naukkarinen, secretary
Patrick Kuoppamäki
Jaakko Kilpiäinen
Iina Gröhn
  • 27.05.2021

    Courses in 2021

  • 17.05.2021

    OPEN CALL NOW OPEN!

Mörk

Mörk is a professional black and white darkroom run by the Finnish Darkroom Association located in Helsinki.

Members of the association can rent the darkroom in two ways: by paying a seasonal fee or a daily fee.

The prices include a waste fee and the basic chemicals: paper and film developer, stop bath and fixer. The chemicals used by the association are supplied by Suomen Interfoto Oy.

If you are not a member of the association and would like to rent the darkroom without joining the association, please contact us and ask for a price.

Members can reserve the darkroom through the Association´s Google Calendar. (Note: When COVID-19 restrictions apply, a maximum of two people can be inside the space at a time.)

If it has been a long time since you have worked in a darkroom, we recommend attending the association’s basic course.

MEMBERSHIP

Anyone interested in analog photography can become a member of the Finnish Darkroom Association by filling out the membership form.

Members are required to commit to the rules of the association and the darkroom, as well as to accept the principles of the association, which include advancing equality and inclusivity.

When joining the association, an annual membership fee is paid. The membership fee for 2021 is €50.

Contact

Mörk is located in Vallila:

Nilsiänkatu 11–13F, 3rd floor
Entry from the Nokiantie side
00510, Helsinki
Finland

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONTACT:
info@pimiotaiteilijat.fi

KATRI LASSILA
Chair
lassila.katri@gmail.com
041 456 3336

NATALIA KOPKINA
Director, Treasurer
nkopkina@gmail.com
040 760 1545

PATRICK KUOPPAMÄKI
Darkroom Technician
patrickkuoppamaki@gmail.com
040 411 7437

SUPPORTED BY

Finnish Cultural Foundation
The City of Helsinki
Arts Promotion Center
Alli Paasikivi Foundation

Suomen Pimiötaiteilijat ry
Finnish Darkroom Association
Finlands Mörkrumskonstnärer
Suoma Sevdnjeslatnjadáiddárat

© 2021

27.05.2021

Courses in 2021

Finnish Darkroom Association resumes its courses in autumn 2021 COVID situation allowing. We will organise one Film Photography and Film Developing course, one Basics of Gelatin Silver Printing course and one course of special or advanced printing techniques if there are enough interested participants.

17.05.2021

OPEN CALL NOW OPEN!

International Open Call for photographers and visual artists to exhibit at The Finnish Museum of Photography as part of the Helsinki Darkroom Festival in 2022.

We are delighted to announce an international Open Call for submissions from artists who use analog processes in the creation of contemporary photographic works. Out of these submissions, a jury will select 10 artists to exhibit at the Finnish Museum of Photography during the Helsinki Darkroom Festival 2022. The purpose of this inclusive, forward-looking festival is to bring together various institutions, researchers and artists working with analog photography.

The festival consists of an exhibition that is both invitational and juried at the newly renovated Finnish Museum of Photography with screenings and events at their centrally located K1 gallery; a symposium about artistic research on analog photography organised together with Aalto University; workshops, professional get-togethers and events open for the public organised in collaboration with Helsinki-based artistic organisations and galleries.


Selected artists will receive

  • Inclusion in an exhibition at the Finnish Museum of Photography during the Helsinki Darkroom Festival from January to April, 2022.
  • An artist’s fee of 500 euros paid by the Finnish Museum of Photography and an expense allowance of up to 1,000 euros paid by The Finnish Darkroom Association.
  • An invitation to join the festival’s Grand Opening as a special guest.


Special requirements

  • Proposed artworks must be produced using analog photographic processes. This includes for example silver gelatin prints, C-prints, daguerreotypes, collodion wet plates, etc. The image production process can have digital stages, but the finished work must rely largely on analog production.
  • Submitted projects must be created recently (projects older than 5 years will not be accepted).
  • If selected for the exhibition, it is the responsibility of the artist to produce, insure, ship round-trip and deliver the selected works ready to hang to the Finnish Museum of Photography by 1st of December, 2021.


How to Enter

  • Read the Terms and Conditions of the Open Call. All submissions are found to be in agreement of the Open Call’s Terms and Conditions.
  • Generate your submission form and pay the 25€ submission fee via Picter.com

 

 

Prices for members

1. SEASONAL FEE: 200 € / season

The association’s seasonal use is divided to two seasons which are:

Spring season 1.1. – 30.6.
Autumn season 1.7.-31.12.

The fee for one season is € 200. A member who has paid a seasonal fee has the right to unlimited use of the darkroom. They get their own key, storage space and can borrow, for example, the association’s film cameras. They can print in the darkroom around the clock.

The member paying the seasonal fee gets their own storage box from the lit room of Mörk, where they can store, for example, their own specialty chemicals. They also get their own drawer located under the worktop. The box and the drawer must be marked with their name. We advise members not to store their own chemicals in the darkroom.

A seasonal member who joins in the middle of a season pays the fee for the entire season. If the member quits the season midway, the seasonal fee will not be refunded. Seasonal members will automatically resume for a new season if they do not return the darkroom key to the Treasurer by the last day of the season (Spring season on June 30th and Autumn season on December 31st).


2. DAILY FEE: 40 € / day

The daily fee includes one day (24h) use of the darkroom. The fee covers the use of both the darkroom and the lit room. The daily user receives a key from the technician for the duration of the printing. The time bought with the daily fee cannot be spread over several days. Dried prints can be retrieved from Mörk free of charge after the one day use has expired, yet pressing prints the day after, for example, requires a second daily fee.

The daily use of Mörk must be recorded on the usage monitoring form located on the notice board and paid according to realised use. If it turns out that a member has used the darkroom more than they have paid for, the member will be expelled from the association without the opportunity to rejoin.

 

Privacy Policy

Sorry, this entry is only available in Finnish.

Rules of the Association

Sorry, this entry is only available in Finnish.

Rules and Regulations of the Darkroom

Sorry, this entry is only available in Finnish.

Benefits and Terms and Conditions

Benefits:

  • Members can participate in the meetings of the association and influence the activities of the association by joining the Board.
  • Members can participate in the association’s events and exhibitions.
  • Members can rent the Mörk darkroom in two ways: by paying a seasonal fee or a daily fee. By paying the seasonal fee, the member is entitled to unlimited use of the darkroom and can lend the association’s film cameras. Members who have paid the seasonal fee will get their own key to the darkroom.
  • Members receive the basic chemicals for film development and black and white printing from the association.


Terms and conditions:

  • Members join by filling in the membership form.
  • Members commit to following the rules of the association and the darkroom.
  • Each member pays an annual membership fee. The amount of the annual membership fee is decided by the Board. The due date for the membership fee is January 31st. If you join during the year, the membership fee will be paid immediately after joining.
  • If a member wishes to resign from the association, they must notify the Board in writing. The membership fee is not refunded.
  • Both the membership and the key to the darkroom are personal. The darkroom key should not be passed on to others.
  • The Board of the association has the right to dismiss a member who acts against the rules or principles of the association or fails to pay their membership fee or the darkroom usage fee. A dismissed member cannot rejoin the association.

About the space

Mörk is a black and white darkroom built by the Finnish Darkroom Association in 2016, located in The Finnish Artists’ Studio Foundation’s Vallila Studio Centre in Helsinki.

Mörk comprises about 70 square meters and includes, in addition to the darkroom, a lit room with a small kitchen, table spaces and shelves for storage, as well as drying racks for prints, a fume hood and a photo press.

The darkroom has comprehensive equipment for even the most demanding printing needs. The space is air conditioned and lofty. It has six ventilation ducts, three of which are above the processing trays. The darkroom has three large sinks in a waterproof space with a floor drain and a raised floor with flood thresholds. There are two exits from the darkroom: a light lock corridor and an emergency exit.

Two of the enlargers (both up to 4×5 “) are in separate booths where the processing of more demanding  negatives can be done in peace. These light-tight booths are also suitable for loading film. Other enlargers are stored on tables with wheels, making the space adaptable for courses and various events.

Mörk is designed to be an accessible space and is available to members of the association around the clock. Additional synergy is provided by the color printing cooperative Värinä which is located in the same building.

Enlargers, 9 pcs with the equipment:

  • 5 pcs for 35 mm and 6 x 7 cm negatives
  • 3 pcs max. For 4×5″ negatives
  • 8×10″ Durst

Become a member

Join the Finnish Darkroom Association by filling out the membership form or by contacting the association's treasurer. We will then send you the membership fee payment details.