22 - Pentti Sammallahti - Association Du Mejan

Jul 6, 2026 – Oct 4, 2026

Born in Helsinki in 1950, Pentti Sammallahti began learning photography techniques at the age of 13. In 1970, he presented his first solo exhibition and subsequently began teaching photography and printing at the School of Art and Design in Helsinki. Traveling across vast, often remote territories, Pentti Sammallahti freely pursues his quest for subtle contrasts, utilizing the panoramic format, of which he is an undisputed master. With a touch of humor, his themes reveal a unique bestiary, populated by contemplative or busy animals—visions stemming from a formative experience the artist modestly recounts in these words: “Finding myself on a rocky island, it suddenly dawned on me that the earth was not round, and I decided not to move. I suddenly grasped what the stone beside me, the boat on the shore, the cloud sailing across the sky, and the dotted trail of migrating birds were telling me… I then understood that photographs are not taken; they are received.” In 2004, the Méjan association presented Pentti Sammallahti’s photographs for the first time in Arles to coincide with the publication of his book, Ici au loin, which has since become a collector’s item. To mark the new edition of Photo Poche and in conjunction with the exhibition on animals, we have decided to showcase a selection spanning his entire body of work.