03 October 2026, 14:00
Janno Bergmann “MICROGENESIS”
Introduction
Janno Bergmann “MICROGENESIS”
02.09.26 – 03.10.26
Pärnu City Gallery at Endla Theatre (Keskväljak 1)
Exhibition opening: Wednesday, September 2 at 17:00
The series is created using experimental methods characteristic of cameraless photography, combining lumen printing and chemigram techniques. Lumen printing harnesses the effects of light and time on photosensitive paper, capturing images without chemical development, while chemigrams open up an unpredictable dialogue between material and chemistry, where light, liquids, and time generate unique patterns.
Microgenesis refers to a process in perceptual psychology where images and their interpretation gradually clarify, rising from the subconscious to the conscious level. This dynamic development can be compared to a photograph slowly emerging in the darkroom—initially blurry and undefined, yet transforming and sharpening over time.
These works, created on black-and-white photographic paper, embody the layered expansion of perception and memory. The images that reveal themselves are not merely recordings, but visual traces of physical and chemical processes, unfolding gradually with each viewing.
The series of photographic images invites the viewer to experience moments of emergence and becoming, where the boundary between chaos and order, chance and structure, begins to blur.
Janno Bergmann was born in 1975 in Pärnu, Estonia. He began his art studies in 1994 at the art department of the Pärnu Sütevaka Humanitarian Gymnasium and has been active in the art field since 1996.
He works across various media, including painting, printmaking, performance art, video art, conceptual art, sculpture, installation art, and photography. Janno Bergmann is a founding member of the performance collective Non Grata. From 2000 to 2001, he worked as an assistant to Ilya Kabakov in New York. Since 2009, he has been involved with the Kunstikonteiner (Art Container) group.
Since 2014, he has been active as a freelance curator. Between 2017 and 2023, he served as the coordinator of the Copper Leg Art Residency, and as of 2025, he coordinates the residency program at the Pärnu Artists’ House. Janno Bergmann was awarded the Pärnu Art Prize in 2013 and the title of Pärnu County “Cultural Pearl” in 2025.
Outside of Estonia, his work has been exhibited in Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Sweden, Germany, Australia, Norway, Georgia, Finland, Japan, and Belgium. In his personal projects, he explores themes of art, culture, and communication, reinterpreting the myths of contemporary art history and seeking poetic imagery within visual art.
Supported by: Cultural Endowment of Estonia
Exhibitions at Endla Theatre can be accessed through the cafe entrance Tue–Fri 11:00–17:00 and Sat 11:00–14:00. Admission is free.
NB! Please note that opening times may be subject to change due to renovations at the Endla Theatre!
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Introduction
Janno Bergmann “MICROGENESIS”
02.09.26 – 03.10.26
Pärnu City Gallery at Endla Theatre (Keskväljak 1)
Exhibition opening: Wednesday, September 2 at 17:00
The series is created using experimental methods characteristic of cameraless photography, combining lumen printing and chemigram techniques. Lumen printing harnesses the effects of light and time on photosensitive paper, capturing images without chemical development, while chemigrams open up an unpredictable dialogue between material and chemistry, where light, liquids, and time generate unique patterns.
Microgenesis refers to a process in perceptual psychology where images and their interpretation gradually clarify, rising from the subconscious to the conscious level. This dynamic development can be compared to a photograph slowly emerging in the darkroom—initially blurry and undefined, yet transforming and sharpening over time.
These works, created on black-and-white photographic paper, embody the layered expansion of perception and memory. The images that reveal themselves are not merely recordings, but visual traces of physical and chemical processes, unfolding gradually with each viewing.
The series of photographic images invites the viewer to experience moments of emergence and becoming, where the boundary between chaos and order, chance and structure, begins to blur.
Janno Bergmann was born in 1975 in Pärnu, Estonia. He began his art studies in 1994 at the art department of the Pärnu Sütevaka Humanitarian Gymnasium and has been active in the art field since 1996.
He works across various media, including painting, printmaking, performance art, video art, conceptual art, sculpture, installation art, and photography. Janno Bergmann is a founding member of the performance collective Non Grata. From 2000 to 2001, he worked as an assistant to Ilya Kabakov in New York. Since 2009, he has been involved with the Kunstikonteiner (Art Container) group.
Since 2014, he has been active as a freelance curator. Between 2017 and 2023, he served as the coordinator of the Copper Leg Art Residency, and as of 2025, he coordinates the residency program at the Pärnu Artists’ House. Janno Bergmann was awarded the Pärnu Art Prize in 2013 and the title of Pärnu County “Cultural Pearl” in 2025.
Outside of Estonia, his work has been exhibited in Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Sweden, Germany, Australia, Norway, Georgia, Finland, Japan, and Belgium. In his personal projects, he explores themes of art, culture, and communication, reinterpreting the myths of contemporary art history and seeking poetic imagery within visual art.
Supported by: Cultural Endowment of Estonia
Exhibitions at Endla Theatre can be accessed through the cafe entrance Tue–Fri 11:00–17:00 and Sat 11:00–14:00. Admission is free.
NB! Please note that opening times may be subject to change due to renovations at the Endla Theatre!
