ART
artist BIO
Isabella Presnal is a visual artist, based in the Helsinki area. Isabella is a dual citizen, Finnish-American, and has lived in multiple countries before moving to Finland in 2017. Her nomadic childhood led her to tell stories through video and become a videographer, which she has been doing professionally for the past five years. In recent years, she has also been exploring photography as an artistic medium. She is interested in the documentation of life using photography and investigating the differences between fine art and documentary photography.
Isabella often explores themes related to her personal life, especially linked to nostalgia and anxiety, in addition to her concerns about the climate crisis. Her goal is to create discussions about the human experience and solutions for the future. Isabella has a Bachelor’s of Culture and Arts from the Tampere University of Applied Sciences, and her thesis focused on women in film. Isabella’s artwork has been seen in the Visual Catalysts exhibition part of the Backlight Photo Festival, Kuvataiteen valtakunta (Realm of Fine Arts) in Mänttä-Vilppula, and online exhibitions like A Brave New World, Plugin(s) Object(s), and Community Life a part of the Scotiabank Contact Photography Festival.
To stay updated about Isabella’s artworks and process follow her on Instagram at @bella_artisting
EDUCATION
Throughout my primary education, I took any art courses offered at school. In high school, I took advanced art, and Higher Lever Visual Arts as part of the International Baccalaureate degree. My end-of-degree work focused on teenage identity, looking into the stereotypes and expectations of high school students in pop culture. The work included multiple paintings, drawings, photography, and installations. In the spring of 2018, I exhibited the work with my class in our final exhibition.
In 2018, I was one of the 15 students accepted into the Fine Arts program, a part of the Media and Arts Bachelor’s Degree, at Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK). My studies have included the minors: Drawing and Painting, Fine Arts Photography, Cultural Exports, and Working in a Co-Operative. I’ve taken additional studies in 360 video production, International Art Collaboration, and marketing. During my studies, I’ve developed many works and series; Look Up, a painting and video project inspired by architectural buildings and the view of looking up to buildings, (Wh)at you (see), and The Invisible Fighters, in addition to collaborating with international artists on many projects like INTAC, short films, and live music photography.
In 2020, I took on the role of marketing manager for the annual Art, Media, and Music International Week, which was also the first-ever online edition of the event due to COVID-19. I generated content, managed social media channels, and designed a website that hosted all of the exhibitions and information for the event.
I worked with my colleague Luiza Preda to write the iWeek 2020 booklet all about the event, artists, musicians, and more. The success of the event led to consultations with companies, and the creation of TAMK Virtual Event Services in November of 2020, which provided technical support for the university community in streaming live events. As the project manager, I was in charge of the main operations of the crew for various virtual events. Between November 2020 to December 2021 our team streamed nearly 20 events.
In the spring of 2022, as part of my degree, I exhibited my thesis work FEMALE Why not just filmmaker?, a documentary short, in a group exhibition Embers at Galleria Himmelblau in downtown Tampere. In June 2022, I completed my Bachelor’s thesis Why not just filmmaker? on women behind the camera throughout history and looked at the evolution of films and video into current digital platforms. The same month I graduated from Tampere University of Applied Sciences with a Bachelor of Culture and Art.
EXHIBITIONS
2022
Kuvataiteen valtakunta (Realm of Fine Arts), Group Exhibition, Mänttä-Vilppula, Finland
Embers, Degree Show, Group Exhibition, Galleria Himmelblau, Tampere, Finland
2021
Community Life, Group Exhibition, Scotiabank Contact Photography Festival, Toronto, Canada / Online
Activate/Agitate, Group Exhibition, International Art Collaboration, Online
UNITY, Group Exhibition, TAMK International Week 2021, Online
2020
A Brave New World, Group Exhibition, Gallery 1313, Toronto, Canada / Online
Visual Catalysts, Group Exhibition, Backlight Festival, Culture House Laikku, Tampere, Finland / Online
SEE, Group Exhibition, TAMK Art Music and Media International Week, Tampere, Finland / Online
Plugins objects(s), Group Exhibition, International Art Collaboration, Online
2019
Visual Catalysts, Group Exhibition, University of Applied Sciences Europe, Berlin, Germany
Tools and Fools, Group Exhibition, TAMK Art Music and Media International Week, Tampere, Finland
2018
IB Visual Art, Group Exhibition, Tikkurila Lukio, Vantaa, Finland