The summer is now…

 

…in the middle of winter. Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to all readers of my blog!

A portrait of Mrs Marimekko

 

Yes, we have seen her in numerous photos during all the years she was the CEO and the dictator of Marimekko. Her black dresses, her black cars, her black stilettos, her creative power and her strength of will. That volcano saved Marimekko when it was drowning after too many unsuccessful directors and economic decisions.
Now she is more or less retired, so it was time to immortalize her by painting her portrait and at the same time celebrating the company´s 60th anniversary.
Instead of a stiff and painfully formal painting so many portraits are the artist Marjatta Tapiola pictured Kirsti Paakkanen with airy brush strokes capturing well her elegance and posture of iron.
The portrait will be hanging in company´s headquarters but to the end of this year it is seen at Marimekko´s shop Marikulma, first floor, Pohjoisesplanadi 33, Helsinki.

Photo of the painting by Paavo Lehtonen.

Waiting for Santa Claus

We all know how exciting life is in December when you are a kid waiting for the visit of Santa Claus. Every morning a opened new door of the Advent Calendar tells us that the much awaited Christmas evening is one day closer. 

I got this lovely Advent Calendar from my grandchild Julius, 6 years old. The small artist did write almost all numbers as he knows them and decided to save us from the effort of opening the doors by doing it himself!

Ladies first!

 

Saana Wang: Hujialou#80, 2009. Pigment print on aluminium, 

84 x 100 cm with frame.  Edition of 5 + 2 AP. 

This is SO true - the ladies rule today in the Finnish photography. Let´s have a look.

Last weekend I made a short visit to Berlin and saw even there that the Finnish photography is doing well. The doors to the international art scene have partly been opened with the hard work of Timothy Persons, his idea of “Helsinki School” photography and Gallery TaiK in Berlin where he lives nowadays. 

At the moment the gallery shows the Hujialou photos by Saana Wang, and the brand new volume 4 of Helsinki School pictures presents only Finnish female photographers.

Saana Wang: Hujialou # 60, 2009. Pigment print on aluminium, 

84 x 100 cm with frame.  Edition of 5 + 2 AP.

Saana Wang: Hujialou # 54, 2009. Pigment print on aluminium, 

84 x 100 cm with frame.  Edition of 5 + 2 AP.

Gallery TaiK, Bergstrasse 22, 10115 Berlin-Mitte. Open Tue-Sat 12 am to 6 pm. Saana Wang´s exhibition is open until 17th December. www.helsinkischool.fi/ 

And yesterday in Helsinki we did celebrate the work of a young woman photographer: the winner of Fotofinlandia 2011 photo competition was Maija Tammi with her Bingo portfolio. “Those are the pictures I would not like to see at my home, but they are strong and realistic and they tell an important story”, said the film director Dome Karukoski who chose the winner.

You can see more Maija Tammi´s pictures and also the other Fotofinlandia 2011 competitors at www.fotofinlandia.fi/ehdokkaat/

Maija Tammi: Ismo ja Marianne. Finnbingo, Turku,  4.4.2010.

Maija Tammi: Jouko. Finnbingo, Turku, 4.4.2010.

Maija Tammi: Bingo aunt Catzi. Boxing Bingo, Tampere 27.8.2010.

75 years of down light quality

 

They are warm, clean, light. And pure.
They are the down products by Joutsen Finland Oy, and I know what I´m talking about. I adore my tiny travel down pillow and use it every night, even at home. My long down coat keeps me warm in winter when it is freezing cold.
This family-owned company is celebrating it´s 75^th anniversary this year. The founders were the grandparents of the CEO Eero Kotkasaari. The company started as a hobby of his grandmother Saima 1936, and grew to a business with the help of her Danish husband Marius Pedersen, then a director it Finnish State Margarin Factory.
Today the aim of the company is make the world´s best clothing and bedding down products. With the help of talented Finnish designers, of course. Here are a couple examples of A/W 2011-12 coat collection, photographed by Jonas Lundqvist.

Dora coat by Ritva-Liisa Pohjalainen.

 

Tara coat by Tuula Rossi.

More info about Joutsen Finland, even in English, you find here http://www.joutsen.fi/
If you are interested in the details of the down cleaning process, check out: http://www.joutsen.fi/en/down/the-joutsen-down-system-process

 

Pasi Eerik Karjula´s Bad Dough

Last opening hours of Pasi Eerik Karjula´s exhibition Bad Dough in Forum Box gallery this afternoon...

I had to take his picture with his collection of small wooden pieces. He had named them as Pieces from Own Head.

It is amazing how impressive his work is. There is a hint of a Finnish solitude, smoke, fire and fairy tales.

To see more his work (and perhaps even buy some) check http://www.saatchionline.com/art/Sculpture-Wood-Story/186110/96674/view

Mari and Marila – hot names of the Finnish art scene

Mari Sunna: Untitled, 2010. Oil on canvas, 60 x 51 cm.

Today – at last - I visited two galleries in Helsinki and saw two suberb exhibitions by Finnish painters. Both are open only to the end of this month, so hurry!

Mari Sunna shows her new, amazing work in Galerie Anhava. What has happened to those doll-like, frightening faces with almost paralyzed expression in their red-rimmed eyes?

Now her females foam, burn, grow like trees or bushes, get wounded. They are still very vulnerable and their secrets are well hidden. I liked a lot the way they were painted: thinly, like putting make-up on with soft fingers and tender colours.
But am I ready to accept the truth under the beautiful surface, to honour the solitude and flames of a suffering soul?

Mari Sunna: Cage, 2011. Oil on canvas, 64 x 60 cm.

Find the details of Mari Sunna exhibition in www.anhava.com    

Totally different attitude to painting meets you in Korjaamo Galleria, where Carnegie Art Award 2012 winner Heikki Marila shows his new tactile flowers.  

Heikki Marila: Kukat XL. Oil on canvas, 200 x 250 cm. 

These modern interpretations on Henri Fantin-Latour´s flower still lifes are painted so thickly that the petals are three-dimensional, almost real. The colours are juicy, shining.

I found them very comforting. Even if they are still lifes they are not still - they are in a constant movement. All the time you find something new in them and start to wonder: are they living, are they really fresher than life? Still lifes have been meant to remind us of our mortality, but these paintings remind us how to enjoy life.

You find Heikki Marila in www.korjaamo.fi/fi/galleria

I had to take a detail photo of the same painting to show you the artist´s  almost fierce way to use colour.

New Fashion in Finland, part 4: Tiia Vanhatapio

Congratulations!

In the Finnish Elle Style Award gala 2011 on Wednesday the Best Collection Prize went to Tiia Vanhatapio and her lovely "Girls on Film".

Here are my favorites of the collection: the Opera dress and jacket, perfect for every body.

Do we need more to become a bird of paradise?

http://www.vanhatapio.fi/collections/girls-on-film-aw1112/

Fresh food from the neighbourhood

Greetings from the cabbage heaven in Vihti: Tuomas Kekki sells his cabbages at Aitokauppa.

Food is nowadays travelling a lot more than we people of this planet. And that is in most cases SOOO stupid. (Strawberries from Belgium in July when our own strawberries are at their best!!! That is true, I saw it with my own eyes last summer in the supermarkets in Middle Finland.)
Luckily we are now getting more aware of our health and the importance of good unprocessed food. And it means that we are having even in Helsinki more and more shops selling fresh “neighbourhood” food.
One of the ethical and ecological newcomers is Aitokauppa (Real Shop) which opened it´s doors officially today. From it´s fresh selection I chose immediately a hunk of clover butter, Finnish goat gruyére cheese, Chef Wotkin´s Peuragrilleri sausages and Pasta Factory`s fresh salmon raviolis for lunch, made this morning.

The designer of the Aitokauppa interior is my talented friend, lovely Mari Vatanen.
 

And this smiling fellow is the proud managing director Juha Sulkakoski.

And there you find Aitokauppa: Tehtaankatu 12, 0140 Helsinki. Open Mo-Fri from 10 am to 8 pm, on Saturdays until 6 pm. www.aitokauppa.fi

 

New Fashion in Finland, part 3: Daniel Palillo KIDS

Hello you proud parents of the little monsters!

Our dear Daniel Palillo has made a lovely collection of kid´s clothes we have been waiting for months. But alas, you can buy only a few of them in Finland, in the shop called Helsinki 10.

You lucky ones in Hong Kong have New Kids on the Block on your doorstep. There are also a couple of shops in USA and Taiwan where to find them.

(And hi, Daniel, if you are reading this: my own size is still 158-162 cm.)
More info on the page http://danielpalillo.blogspot.com/

 

New light in Habitare Helsinki

The family of trash designer Henrik Enbom has eaten a lot of canned tomatoes. Yes, he made these lampshades from the tins. Photo © Paula Hietaranta

Habitare is a HUGE exhibition of furniture, interior design, art, antiques and design in Helsinki open until Sunday 18th September at Helsingin Messukeskus.

An overwhelming experience to see in one day, especially if you get stuck to one place.

That happened to me. Trash Design home is so full of happy recycling ideas how to turn rejected things into something new that I stayed there for a long time.

Trash Design is a baby of journalist Isa Kukkapuro-Enbom and her husband, designer Henrik Enbom.

Both go for a sustainable open source design: you can buy Henrik´s LdS (Licht der Stiftung) lamp which got last year a shared first prize in Habitare Ecodesign competion, but you can also make this lamp by yourself. The instructions are in Trash Magazine´s The First Issue, 2011. You can read it in the net, and there is also the English translation:

http://www.trashmagazine.net/

I liked also a lot this flickering radio-fireplace Fire Play designed by Jaakko Leeve. Photo © Paula Hietaranta

www.habitare.fi

Gallery news from Helsinki

First day of September there were two new art galleries opened in Helsinki.

Pick Me Gallery looks like someone´s living room but is really a concept shop offering photography, production and motion design services.

Address is Iso-Roobertinkatu 48. 00120 Helsinki. Open Mon-Fri 10 ap – 5 pm.

http://www.pickme.fi/

  

Kalhama & Piippo gallery has opened a new spacious, even luxurious space at Bulevardi street.
The opening exhibition is Jukka Korkeila´s Minä en kuulu vain itselleni (open until 2nd October). The painting of a man in a red wrestler´s jersey is titled Fall.

Gallery Kalhama & Piippo Contemporary Ltd, Bulevardi 10 A 1 a, 00120 Helsinki. Open  Tue-Fri 11 am-5 pm, Sat-Sun 11 am-4 pm. 

www.kalhamapiippo.com

Our Son is ready to conquer the world

Policeman Volander (Rauno Ahonen) and Ville (Hannes Suominen) trying to reach the core of despair. Photo by Charlotte Estman-Wennström.

Terror, death, school shootings – the explosive despair of young men has been in the news all over the world during last years.
It is also the subject of Meidän poika (Our Son), a new and important play by Pasi Lampela at Helsingin Kaupunginteatteri. It is more topical than ever, and  should be seen even abroad. Those desperate boys are not only the names in the news; they are closer than we think. They are our sons, our neighbours, they live in our cities, in our country and in our world.
Ville is clumsy but an intelligent boy, doing well at school – and bullied by his classmates. To revenge Ville constructs a bomb, but he is also a bomb himself. People around him realise that there is something terribly wrong in him, but don´t know how to deal with it before it turns into tragedy. To his mother Ville says everything is fine, and which mother would like to believe it even if she knows that it is not true?
To me the essence of the play was the question how to prevent things like these happening. With open eyes, with open heart? Those moments of mutual understanding are so rare and delicate as we can see even in this play.
At the end the policeman who has failed in helping Ville understands that he and we all are responsible: ”Where to find the magic word that could put an end to this?”

http://www.hkt.fi/

 

Camilla, the real beauty queen of Finland

This charming lady with flowers is Camilla Aho, and no, she is not a florist but a specialist in making Finnish women more beautiful.

This year is the 30th anniversary of Camilla Aho Oy, her company importing professional beauty care products and machinery, and on Tuesday there was a most wonderful garden party, which Camilla´s friends and business friends attended. It was more or less an emotional family meeting, not a stiff company celebration.

During her years in business this tiny volcano has stubbornly followed not only her head but also her heart and instincts to get the beauty clinics understand the importance of quality and safety to the customer´s wellbeing.

Finland is a small country, but in some cases big: Camilla has been chosen twice to world´s number 1 importer of Italian RVB cosmetic line.

Congratulations and hugs!

 

Many of Camilla´s clients are now her friends. Finlands´s blue and white voice 

Katri Helena gave a lovely performance at the party.
  Photos © Paula Hietaranta

Welcome Hunger King!

If you are in Helsinki this evening or during Wednesday and Friday and can visit Kamppi bus station do not miss this Hunger King stand.

Hunger King is a new artwork piece by Jani Leinonen, who really knows how to use his skills to tease, confuse and astonish people. And bring them to think.

Now he created this mock copy of a well-known hamburger chain to help Finn Church Aid get more attention and means to the starving people of the world.

There you can buy a Take Away menu to help us (= Finnish producers of organic food) or donation Give Away menu to help others. With 5,50 euros you have Nordic Special, a Karelian pie and a bottle of juice, but with 23 euros you donate a meal to a whole village. Today have the Give Away offers been more popular which is very good indeed.

Hunger King is open from 7 am to 7 pm until 1st September. 
Photo © Paula Hietaranta

New fashion in Finland, part 2: Paola Suhonen

Paola in the black lace dress from her Paola Suhonen by Seppälä collection.
 

Paola Suhonen is a household name on the Finnish design scene with her Ivana Helsinki label.
This golden girl, so full of energy, has been designing almost everything from dresses to accessories, from home textiles to ceramic mugs, from Coca Cola cans to package materials for the Posti brand, from jewellery to the decoration of HP sauce bottle.
Then a couple of years ago she left to America to learn how to make movies.
But designing clothes has not been history: last week we did celebrate in Helsinki a new party collection Paola has made for Seppälä store, and the short art noir film Gone With The River she made in July in NYC to present the clothes and her ambitious way of making films.
The dresses, which will at Seppälä shops all around Finland since the beginning of November, are perhaps not so beautiful when hanging in the shops but oh boy - wearing them makes you feel beautiful.
And this is really what counts.

 

Chiffon dress and a decorative belt.

Dress with the golden feather print.

Black velvet dress.
B/W pictures by Joel Jägerroos.

New fashion in Finland, part 1: Aki Choklat

Petritex Oy has made men´s quality shirts in Kuopio since 1973, but now it has opened a new door for a wider approad of fashion and asked designer Aki Choklat to create a whole collection for men.
Aki wants to add more colour and joyfulness into men´s clothing and succees in it beautifully by translating the tradition of quality into today, adding to it his clever sense of well-thought and versatile details.
His Fashion Democracy S/S 2012 Petrifun collection was shown yesterday on schooner Briggen Gerda and presented true to it´s name lovely clothes worn by real men of all sizes, not whippet thin male models, all styled skillfully by Teri Niitti. Amazing what colours, fitting sizes and a choice of accessories can do! There were guys I found hard to recognize, even if I know them quite well!

So the fashion weather forecast for next spring promises sunshine, fresh winds and good temperature to Finnish (and also to foreign) men.

I know that many men are a bit shy in choosing and wearing strong colours, but hopefully they learn. And learn something about them as well: these clothes are made for men who appreciate themselves.

  

Stylish fellows on board: designer Aki Choklat and chef Antto Melasniemi. By the way, where did Antto get his gorgeous tan – working at his fashionable Solar Kitchen?
Photos © Paula Hietaranta