Packages before the holiday

I love sending packages probably because it contains a surprise always , for the ones opening it. The one that just send by mail, was for a competition in illustration. It has been a long time since I tried that, but I thought I ll give it a go, keeping fingers crossed...

The last month was a very diverse one conserning illustration: wallpaintings, illustration for a tattoo, for a c.d., a poem book, starting with idea s for our new performance and now still one set up for a next surprise project, after which I will have a real holiday with my children...so much looking forward to that!

Rain and sun are switching turns at the moment, some summer thunderstorms seen,...at least it s not a boring summer until now  :)

Iloinen Toinen Keksi/Happy Toinen Keksi and some other things

The last month, I had some fun painting walls: first of all in the personal house of Lasten Taikamaa (www.lastentaikamaa.fi), a stairway turned into a forrest, and after that, our newly opened cafe got some more colours as I decorated the children corner.

At moment a group exhibition is going on in Teijo (http://www.teijonmasuuni.fi/), together with dear artists-friends. If you re in the neighbourhood, I recommend you to go and have a look.
It  s a nice place: besides our exhibition, crafts and arts  for sale, a cafe and an old authentic oven to be seen.

This coming 2 weeks I will be rushing trough some unfinished assignments and also preparing some test drawings for new projects to come. After that, I hope to take a small holiday and enjoy what s really important...

Hymykuoppa: an EU project ended

about 2 weeks ago our project Hymykuoppa officially ended by a conference/workshops.
A book has been created about the whole project, an other beautiful book related to us artist directly. Now we are left with our products, which we created during the last 3 years.




Our end product is a program we developed with SI therapist Sirpa Kauranen; it was wonderfull to work with her! We developed a package consisting a series of 12x sesions per group, working with children wich are confronted with minor difficulties in day cares. The idea is to also spot and support these children, so the possible problems don t unnecessary enlarge itself in time.
An other part of my end product , as an artist and supported by knowledge I gained through working with Sirpa, is a "Suitcase full of idea s" called" To be seen".
The substance is meant to stimulated different senses and invite to move in a non competitive, but creative way. At the same time to invite to work with lost materials as well as challenging adults to create on children's level and from their point of view. This suitcase is accompanied with a pdf containing my points of view as an artistic person and also idea-cards and steps to create your own idea-suitcase, -cupboard, -wall with the children in your group.'

http://www.salo.fi/toimialoittain/sivistystoimi/kulttuuripalvelut/hymykuopat/
"Elämysmatkalaukku varhaiskasvatukseen

In autumn this suitcase will be for rent for reasonable fees, hopefully developing to something new!

The sun is shining!

"Chain of friendship"

The project "chain of friendship" is based on the book "Ystävyys kuin perhosen kutitus" (A friendship tickling as butterflies)
This spring I had the pleasure to go and have workshops in daycares and school.
We builded for each a own friend, using socks, stockings to give it form.
About 60 children got their own creature home.

The filling consited out of different kind of materials giving weight, and decoration/creatures where free to invent to the kids. We worked on the floor again, spreading with lots of fun all the stuff around, getting wonderful personal figures. With some groups we created, according to the book, recipes for friendship, they could be anything, from jelly to hugs to snails...

Basically my goal was to get the children once again in contact with recycling materials and above all the idea to create little social sideways for the children to talk, play between each others and having created their own toy.
An other goal was to bring forward the importance of weight versus calming effect. Each creature was filled with something that gave it a sustainable weight, so the could be put on the stomach/neck/legs to calm down and help to focus more.
It was amazing how children instinctively started to do this.

So the workshop had in total a calming effect by giving them choices to create their own, by the feeling of the materials and using the hands in different ways, and by the end product.

Personaly I got a lot out of it,  and will be probably making some more this year:)

This project was sponsored by Varsinais-Suomen Taidetoimikunta