Finland, midsummer residency 2013. Rovaniemi (Lapland), Helsinki, Växär island (Baltic Sea)
I am always most interested in the undercurrents of a place. In Finland I encountered subtle contrasts of dream and reality, past and present, modern and rustic, warm and cold, and shadow and light. The nonstop midsummer light has a primal effect on both the psyche and physiology, with a dizzying vitality and presence of its own. Yet the light seems to never fully banish the blue palette of the Great North. The pervasive blue is like the menacing Groke in Tove Jansson's lyrical tales, a reminder that winter's cold will soon enough return.
