Yrjö Tuunanen’s memorial at Väre, 25 January 2021
In memoriam
It is with deep regret and sadness that we must inform you of the passing of our long-time colleague and friend, Yrjö Tuunanen who passed away at home last week. Here at Aalto University School of Arts, Design & Architecture Yrjö was a doctoral candidate within the Department of Media.
Yrjö Tuunanen graduated with an MA from the Department of Photography at TaiK in the early 1990s and his early professional career included work as a photographer and photojournalist. Later he served as a researcher at Aalto Media Factory and the Aalto ARTS’ Department of Media.
Yrjö’s MA thesis work, which included the photo art book, ‘Viljelijän sopimus’ – ‘Hay on the Highway’, produced with his student colleague, Henrik Duncker, won the highly prestigious European Photography Award in 1993.
Yrjö was a very smart and kind person, a great presenter and a person who was devoted to his artistic and intellectual pursuits. His thesis, “Narrative Transparency in News Discourse, Uncovering the Discursive Functions of Narrative Assets in News”, included a proposal for a new method advocating narrative transparency as a guideline in online journalism. He had recently completed the first draft of his dissertation.
Yrjö’s passing has come as a great shock to all of us who knew him and had worked with him. We offer our sincere condolences to Yrjö’s family and loved ones for their tragic loss.
Prof. Philip Dean Prof. Lily Diaz
Head of Department of Media Head of Research, Department of Media
