SARI KEMPPINENGraphics 13.3.2003 – 6.4.2003

Watching a mitten created as if by magic was a familiar sight in my childhood. From a child´s angle, all the women in my family seemed skilled in the noble field of craft. I therefore instinctively perceive craft as an important part of being a woman.

Values have changed since my childhood and being in constant hurry affects the way we spend our time. Creating craft requires some skill of the hand and perseverance but above all unhurriedness. My own work also progresses slowly, with monotonous work stages along the way. I have realised the need for some of the ‘virtues´ required for craft in my own working life. I think that in today´s world, slowly progressing work also makes a silent statement.

The women portrayed in my work represent for me womanhood in general. Old photographs bought at second-hand markets show women long forgotten by others; as such, they are references to the past.

A variety of materials and the use of a range of techniques have been an inspiring force behind my work for a long time. I tend to come across my materials by accident, falling for some characteristic or another and storing the sensation in the back of my mind to wait for the right piece and the right moment. Material itself is important to me, as it makes references to its own past and significance. I am not interested in working solely with one technique or one material, instead I let the work in hand choose them. The materials used for the pieces at this exhibition can be linked with women´s everyday and festive lives: shimmering white satin, buttons and hooks.

Second-hand buttons remind me of the different generations´ varying attitudes towards consumption. Once upon a time, buttons were carefully collected and worn-out clothes were made into rugs. This seldom happens these days. Exaggeratedly, it can be said that one generation has learnt to save, the other to consume.

Although my exhibition is in part a trip down the memory lane, it also contemplates our own times: hurry, consumption and the sometimes extreme sorrows we encounter in our lives.

Sari Kemppinen