FINLAND

The Finnish (or Suomi) is part of the Uralic languages family that has nothing to do with Scandinavian languages (Swedish, Danish, Norwegian). This language family also includes in particular the Hungarian, the Estonian, and the Saami.
The Saami is divided into nine dialects; the most used is the Northern Saami. Other dialects do not exist anymore: the Kemi Saami, extinct since more than a century, and the Akkala Saami, extinct on December 23, 2003, with the death of Marja Sergina, her last speaker.
The sauna, Finnish word that means “stove”, is a social and familial Finnish tradition since more than 2 000 years. The Aboriginal people from North America also knew about the sweat cabins.
LFinland is an independent country since 1918. Before that, the country had belonged to both Russia and Sweden.
Santa Claus (also named “Joulupukki” or “Christmas Goat” in Finland) lives officially inside a house just above the Polar Arctic Circle, close to the city of Rovaniemi, in the Northern province of Lapland. The postal office of Santa Claus (address: Santa Claus village, polar circle, FIN-96930) receives among 700,000 letters each year, all sent by children of 198 countries.

CREATORS

KALLE NIO

Video projection and decor conceptor

Kalle Nio is a visual artist and a magician from Finland. In his works he examines the new kinds of expression possibilities provided by video image and its capacities related to time and space. He has graduated from The Finnish Academy of Fine Arts. He’s range of work varies from visual theatre and contemporary circus to short films and video installations. As a magician Kalle has specialised in developing new tricks and new kinds of magic. In 2000 he won the third price in the world championships of magic (FISM) in the Inventions category. He is a co-founder of visual theatre / contemporary circus group WHS. The group has taken their performances across more than 30 countries, visiting over a hundred festivals, circuses, art museums, theatres and puppet theatres around the world. WHS works in Teatteri Union, an old cinema theatre in the center of Helsinki where they also organise live shows and cinema presentations.

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CIRCUMPOLAR AUTHORS

The point of view of people living in the North has also been gathered from short story writings inspired by a questionnaire used during expeditions. Those short stories, written by one author from each of the 8 countries touching the Arctic Polar Circle, will serve as creative inspiration. Here are some excerpts.

Miehen katse
(Finnish)
Muutkin naiset yhtyvät leikkiin. Lasketaan päiviä ja unia ja kilpaillaan haaveista ja jos joku kohottelee kulmakarvojaan ylimielisesti, kun toinen kertoo, että päivisin on tylsää niin kukaan ei siitä häiriinny, koska ivalliset ilmeet katoavat höyryyn. Myös epäilykset ja pahat olot katoavat höyryyn. Miestensä hakkaamien naisten mustelmat katoavat höyryyn. Rakkauden puremajäljet katoavat höyryyn.
Se vain ei katoa, että joka ikinen tahtoisi pois, tahtoisi kiivetä taloa ympäröivän muurin ylitse ja juosta kauas pois, juosta jotakin tekemään, toimettomuudesta pois, mutta kukaan ei uskalla yksin, koska kukaan ei yksin uskalla, koska ihminen ei tunne onnea ilman toista ihmistä, eikä yksi lähdöllään tahdo aiheuttaa toisille kärsimystä.

Listen to the author read an excerpt

A Man's Gaze
The other women join in the game. They count days and dreams, share their dreams and desires, compete over them, and if one of them haughtily raises an eyebrow when someone says the days seem boring, nobody is upset, because those cynical expressions disappear into the steam. Doubts and feelings of uncertainty disappear into the steam. The bruises left by men who beat their wives disappear into the steam. Love’s teeth marks disappear into the steam. What never disappears is everyone’s desire to get away, to climb over the wall surrounding the house and run far away, run away to do something, to put the idleness behind them, but no one dares do it alone, because alone no one dares do anything, because a person cannot feel happiness without the presence of another person, and nobody wants to cause others suffering by leaving the nest.
The other women join in the game. They count days and dreams, share their dreams and desires, compete over them, and if one of them haughtily raises an eyebrow when someone says the days seem boring, nobody is upset, because those cynical expressions disappear into the steam. Doubts and feelings of uncertainty disappear into the steam. The bruises left by men who beat their wives disappear into the steam. Love’s teeth marks disappear into the steam. What never disappears is everyone’s desire to get away, to climb over the wall surrounding the house and run far away, run away to do something, to put the idleness behind them, but no one dares do it alone, because alone no one dares do anything, because a person cannot feel happiness without the presence of another person, and nobody wants to cause others suffering by leaving the nest.

MARIA PEURA

Maria Peura (b. 1970) is a prize-winning author and dramaturge. She was given the prestigious Young Aleksis Kivi Prize, and nominated for the Finlandia Prize, for her debut novel Your Love Is Infinite (On rakkautes ääretön) in 2001. It also received received the Olvi Foundation Award and the Good Deed for Children Award. At the Edge of Light (Valon reunalla), received stellar reviews both in Finland and in the UK, where it was published in 2007. Among Peura’s other works is a collection of poetry for children.
Works
Ja taivaan tähdet putoavat
Published: 2014 | Publisher: Teos
Vedenaliset
Published: 2008 | Publisher: Teos
Valon reunalla
Published: 2005 | Publisher: Teos
On rakkautes ääretön
Publié en 2001 | Publisher: Tammi



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