Today, as luck would have it, I had a whole day free in Helsinki. I came here last night and had plans to visit a school in eastern Helsinki this morning but the teachers I was supposed to meet got stuck in London. I got an anxious alert text from my colleague at 9:30 that the visit was off and I had nothing to do until dinner at 7:30 pm. My friend had a museum pass she let me borrow and I had a day to explore. I had heard about the Ernesto Neto exhibit at the Kiasma, the contemporary art museum, and I was excited to check it out.
Neto is a contemporary artist from Brazil. His art installations invite the viewer to participate and experience his work by actually touching and getting into his pieces. All of his installations are huge pieces that fill up a room and are made with soft materials that viewers are allowed to touch, sit on, walk on and experience. His current solo exhibit in Finland takes up two floors and is all made from bright colored string. Neto's huge piece on the 5th floor of the Kiasma was strongly influenced by his relationship with the Huni kuin people of Brazil. This indigenous tribe of the Amazon rainforest has had to fight to keep their culture alive as well as fight against enslavement by Peruvians and Brazilians starting in the 19th century. At the core of the Huni kuin culture is a close connection to nature and all living things. Neto has gained trust with this tribe through frequent visits and his art respects and references their culture. He is trying to help protect their culture through his current piece of work.
This huge piece was originally inspired by the shape of the head of a boa constrictor. Guests are asked to remove their shoes and are then invited to walk into and around this piece.
Inside, a bench, table, cushions and even a drum and acoustic guitar await visitors. Young children were crawling around the space when I was there.
The walls in this huge space were covered with 2D art paying tribute to the connection to nature that is so important to Neto and the Huni kuin. Against the back wall there is even a written tribute in string acknowledging his work with the Huni kuin people.
I really enjoyed the exhibit and as I walked the streets of Helsinki I thought more about the work and realized that really the only artistic endeavors I undertake are with string. String is not only my favorite medium to work with, but is really the only medium I use because I am not very (or at all) artistically inclined. Pencils, markers, paints, chalk are a mystery to me. My drawings look the same as they did in about 4th grade and I can't even doodle. However, I am able to create some pretty nice pieces when given some balls of yarn and needles...and directions.
When people say that I am a talented knitter I usually thank them, and then say that I am simply just really good at following directions and an insane perfectionist when following patterns. In my attempt to follow all the rules and get it exactly right I'll rip out rows and rows of work to fix a mistake. While sometimes my obsessive need to follow rules or do things exactly the way the directions say can be annoying and can drive myself and others crazy, my need to follow the rules when knitting means that most of my pieces turn out pretty well.
In Finland, I've found a lot of time to knit again. And I'm knitting because I want to and I'm doing it because it is relaxing. I'm not anxiously trying to finish a sweater or blanket for a baby shower that is in a week. I'm not trying to make something for a friend's birthday in between teaching, tutoring, dorm duty, parenting, and being a wife. That kind of knitting isn't relaxing; it's stressful! Here, I can knit at home while my girls play together. I can knit while sitting in a lecture to keep my hands busy so my mind can focus. Train rides, bus rides, and long car rides provide plenty of time to listen to an audiobook and knit. This has been one more benefit of slowing down and enjoying the gift of free time while I've been in Finland. The town of Jyvaskyla has three absolutely lovely knitting shops and when I wait for my girls to have their dance classes I see many women of various ages knitting. It's a skill kids learn and adults continue to enjoy. Craft education is part of the national curriculum and most students (boys and girls) learn how to knit (and use a sewing machine) in school. I taught Tea how to knit last week and I was really impressed with how quickly she picked it up. In just two days she made a blanket for Stripey, Talia's small stuffed cat. In fact, on two occasions she turned down a chance to watch television to just sit with me and knit! I am hoping that she will also learn how to enjoy the relaxing and repetitive motion of the needles and the joy in making a product of which she can be proud.
Below are three of the pieces I have made since being in Finland. The two scarves were made for two of my good friends here in Finland. I loved the way that these blues could be used to make the same scarf twice to create mirror images. When my friend picked out the colors she fell in love with the blues because Finland is known for all the lakes and water and this scarf looked perfectly "Finnish" to her.
I had fun making these little mitts for myself because it was a new challenge. I'd never done a "thumb" before and the lace pattern on top was a fun way to have a little bit of a challenge but nothing so complicated that I couldn't also listen to a book.
And finally, here are the two balls of yarn that will soon become a scarf for another friend...
Here's to more string in my life, more time to enjoy the relaxing stitches and more gifts for friends!