Film photography is still alive even though digital photography is the mainstream in photography nowdays. Darkroom development is increasing in popularity, especially among young photographers. The significance of art and self-expression are highlighted in these marginal methods.

Impression Remains, the main exhibition of Helsinki Darkroom Festival that is organized for the first time, celebrates current darkroom art and the creative possibilities of analog photography. The exhibition introduces eleven photographers who have been selected among 394 applicants who responded to festival’s open call.

The exhibition features artwork from the last couple of years and the international artists represent different perspectives and ways of expression. There are images produced with a camera as well as images created using only chemical processes. What is common to all the artwork in this exhibition is that their physical form is an inseparable part of the process of their creation.

Helsinki Darkroom Festival is organized by The Finnish Darkroom Association. The association was founded in 2016 to ensure the preservation of analog photography and share the know-how of darkroom printing. The festival is sponsored by The Finnish Cultural Foundation.

Artists in the exhibition: Jacob Clayton, Marcus DeSieno, Máté Dobokay, Carol Golemboski, Elodie Grethen, Galina Kurlat, Liam Leslie, Frank McElhinney, Iana Mizguina, Sébastien Reuze, Giorgi Shengelia.

Check out the glossary for photography and darkroom art here