From Folklore to Applied Arts [antikvár]

ForewordThen the old Vainamoinert goes full speed ahead in the copper boat the coppery punt to where mother earth rises and heaven descends and there he stopped with his craft with his boat he paused; but he left the kantele behind the fine music for Finland for the folk eternal joy the great songs for his children.(The Kalevala. Translated from the Finnish by Keith Bosley. Oxford University Press, Oxford 1989.)In the various stages of Finnish history, art has always been an integral part of people's lives. Our ancestors who migrated to this area in the Stone Age did not merely content themselves with forging utensils and whetting axes; they quenched their thirst for beauty by decorating these objects. Songs, games and stories have provided relief to hard labor and alleviated the hardships of life. They have also been a means of passing on the tradition from generation to generation. Later in history, Finns found justification for their cultural and historical existence in their national epic, the Kalevala. The emergence of an independent Finland was accompanied by Jean Sibelius's Finlan-dia, and the nation has processed the traumatic experiences ofwar through the novels of the national writer Vaino Linna. In recent decades, Finland has entered the forums of heavy international competition along with her young artists. It can there-fore be said that Finnish identity has both been reflected in art and shaped through it.No single work of art - not to mention stylistic trends - can emerge in a vacuum. Art, and culture at large, is constantly renewing, revising and contesting its past. It is therefore impossible to understand contemporary art without seeing it in relation to its past - a fact which is also reflected in the prominence given to historical perspectives throughout this book.Discussions of Finnish art and culture often give the impression that Finland is a cultural islet. It is true that in many respects she has been a hinterland, situated far away from the foci of continental trends, and this isolation has brought about an abundance of idiosyncratic features in Finnish culture. Finland's geographic location and political role between east and west have nevertheless made her a meeting point for the eastern and western civilizations. Finnish art and culture have emerged and developed within the sphere of this cultural interaction, whose fruitfulness has varied in different times. The essays in this book therefore frequently review Finnish art in relation to foreign stimuli, pointing out their original Finnish modifications. Yet these contacts have not been a one-way process; Finnish architecture, fine arts, music and industrial arts have also aroused a remarkable interest in other countries. Considering the diversity of international contacts, one can only wonder what is ultimately the essence ofFinnish art and culture.* * *