New public artworks inspired by children’s forest excursions and drawings  

Two new public artworks have been finished and installed in one daycare and a school in Helsinki. The children of these educational institutions took part in the creation of both artworks. Mari Mäkiö created a work for Daycare Tunturi in Mellunmäki and Hyäryllistä Artist Group for Taivallahti Primary School located in Töölö. The works were curated by HAM Helsinki Art Museum, and they were financed in accordance with the City of Helsinki’s Percent for Art principle.

Mari Mäkiö: Impressions, 2024

Artist Mari Mäkiö’s ceramic relief, Impressions, has been installed in Mellunmäki’s new Daycare Tunturi. The work captures a fleeting moment in a forest’s lifecycle, which includes growth, decay, and decomposition.

Impressions is made up of 116 handmade and glazed ceramic tiles each of which recreates the patterns of bark and engravings made by bark beetles on the treesof the forest surrounding the daycare centre. The artwork flows like a path from outdoors to indoors and creates a connection between the nearby forest and the daycare centre. The work consists of two parts, Impressions (Spruce), whichis embedded in the daycare centre’s brick facade, and Impressions (Aspen), which extends across the walls of the corridor and dining hall indoors.

The work was inspired by the forest excursions the artist organised with the kids from the daycare. The children looked for interesting surfaces in the forest and made imprints of them with clay. The kids then got to keep these clay pieces, and Mari Mäkiö continued exploring the forest, choosing to incorporate the surfaces of spruce and aspen into the final work.

Mari Mäkiö (b. 1982) lives and works in Helsinki. She works with installation, combining various media, such as ceramics, text, printing techniques, video, and sound. She often creates her works in collaboration with other artists or communities. Mäkiö graduated from Aalto University with an MA in photography in 2015. 

Hyäryllistä Artist Group: Take Wing, 2024

Created by the Hyäryllistä Artist Group, Take Wing is arelief that is based on line drawings the pupils of Taivallahti Primary School made of their hands. The artwork’s form is organic, resembling a flock of birds, and it’s been installed on the staircase landing of the school’s upper building.

When the Hyäryllistä group visited Taivallahti Primary School, they were told about visits by former pupils, Advent season celebrations, and memories associated with the place. An image of candlelight and natural light pouring into the space from two directions began to take shape in the minds of the artist group. Polished gold-coloured brass, which comes to life when reflecting light, was chosen as the material for the artwork. The idea to incorporate the presence of the pupils into the artwork also arose.

Pupils participated in the creation of the artwork by drawing their own handprints, which Hyäryllistä collected during a one-week workshop. In the workshops, the group showed videos of bird flocks and encouraged pupils to position their hands in a way that resembled the silhouettes of birds. According to the Hyäryllistä group, “We need everyone’s hands to build this world. The birds and wings remind us of a free world and free opportunities. A school should be a place where your wings become stronger, and you can practice flying with a flock you know.” 

Hyäryllistä has worked together for over 30 years, and they are one of the most long-standing artist groups in Finland. The group had an extensive retrospective in WAM, Turku, in 2020. Each group member has their individual artistic practice, with which the group’s projects and phases intertwine. Group members Heli Kurunsaari and Sari Koski-Vähälä realised the work for Taivallahti Primary School.

The works were financed in accordance with Helsinki’s Percent for Art principle: A part of the city’s budget for construction and renovation projects is set aside for new public artworks. HAM Helsinki Art Museum is the art expert in these projects, and the works are added to the City of Helsinki’s art collection, managed and curated by HAM. The collection already includes more than 200 works implemented through the Percent for Art principle.