Karl Joonas Alamaa

Lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium

Artist statement

Karl Joonas Alamaa they/them (2000) is an Estonian artist, designer and researcher, who has studied fashion at the Estonian Academy of Arts and acquired their Master’s in costume design at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. Alamaa is interested in personal and collective power — how the strength of individuals can oppose authority and politics. In their practice, they often engage with the notion of mundanity, exploring the potential of everyday phenomena and small actions to create change, working with historical archival materials, personal memories, and experiences. It is often characteristic of them to approach topics through sensitive and controversial angles of North-Eastern European recent history and social critique. Although working with different cultural pain points, their work does not lack subtle humour.

Artwork