Travel Essay in Art: Helsinki

Travel Essay in Art: Helsinki

Fishermen outside and writers inside


It’s nice to be in a city where you can hear the cawing of seagulls. 

In Finland, it’s herring season. The fishermen are standing close to each other on one side of the bridge. It's explained to me that their fishing position depends on how the wind comes in and out of the water. That's where the fish will swim.  

We’re discussing how nature is still the number one topic in art in Finland. Nature is expected to bring along depth to the art work, they tell me. 

Sometimes it's nice to turn things around, like: “Nature is killing us!” It’s left up to you if that points to human nature or not. 

On Saturday, it’s beautiful sunny weather in Helsinki. Suddenly the trees start to bloom. But summers are short in Finland. “The summer was nice and I actually enjoyed the whole day,” Liisa laughs.

Jonas Ekeberg, founder and chief editor of Kunstkritikk. Nordic Art Review, gives a talk at Sine Gallery. He says that the magazine pays 400 to 500 Euro for a “serious” art review. He also uses the words “judgement” as one of the five elements for a good art review and “authority” for his aim to recover the status of the art critic. So Kunstkritikk is probably not the hottest art magazine in town but for 400 to 500 Euro I’m happy to leave my silliness behind. 

Finnish art persons like to joke about the Norwegian art world, which is much better supported financially than theirs: “They don’t fart before they get funding.”

The Finnish language is beautiful and often escapes translation. Take the word “lāmpimāmpāā”, which means “warmer” when, for instance, one space is warmer than the other. 

Like everywhere in the world, also the Finnish make small talk about the weather. But apparently they say: “It has been weather”, which doesn’t mean that the weather has been good or bad but it’s just a way of saying nothing. 






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