Kaiho – Painting the Longing
This week, I talk about the Finnish word “kaiho” and how art can bring up deeper longings than we first realize.
I created this acrylic painting at the end of September. It’s called “Sammumaton kaiho” which is something like “Unquenchable Longing” or “Extinguishable Longing” in English, but I think that this time, the Finnish name is much better.
Kaiho is one of the most heart-breaking words that I know. It’s not like kaipaus (yearning) but something much quieter. And being a short word, it’s like a whisper in the air.
Say it softly with me: “kaiho” (kaaiihoh)…
It feels like a piece of a deep agony flies away with the word. Maybe every language has these kinds of soothing kaihos that don’t belong to the daily vocabulary, but that need to get out now and then.
Quick Start with Happy Colors
I started the painting by filling the canvas with candy colors. With a big brush, it was quick and fun.
I didn’t overthink the subject, but painted plant-like shapes and tried to enjoy the process as much as possible.
In the photo above, the painting is still quite young. But it progressed quickly!
Finlandia Raised the Longing
It was Friday evening when I was adding final touches to the painting. At the same time, I was watching – well listening to – Voice of Finland. It’s a singing contest, pretty similar to American Idol.
Even if all the songs are usually rhythmic pop songs, one singer had chosen differently. He sang Finlandia, a hymn, instead. Every Finn knows Finlandia, and it brings many stereotypical images to mind: forests, lakes, swans, snow, blue, white. I have heard the song thousands of times. But this time, I was painting too, and it always boosts my senses.
Do You Know Finlandia?
The song is composed by Jean Sibelius in 1899, and a poet V.A Koskenniemi has written the lyrics.
>> Here’s a great article about Finlandia, including an English translation for the lyrics.
Watch BBC Symphony Chorus and the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Finnish Sakari Oramo, play the song.
Remembering What’s Lost
With Finlandia, I was reminded of what I no longer have. As a child, I lived in Karelia, Eastern Finland, near the Russian border. Finland lost a part of it in a war in 1940, and it has left its marks on future generations as well. But personally, the bigger loss was leaving Karelia to study engineering, and quickly after that, losing my mother.
Here’s an earlier picture of me, my mother, and a close friend Saimi Norimäki. Saimi was born in Western Finland, and she was much more straight-forward and brave than what we had used to see. But she was a woman with a warm heart, and I have many fond memories of her.
This photo is a good representation of the sadness that I have. The colors have faded away, there’s a lot of empty space, but I still remember the people.
A More Joyful Longing
However, when painting along with Finlandia, I was able to dig through the sadness and find the longing that was more joyful. I asked myself: “What are you painting, Paivi?” The answer came quickly:
“I paint what I know best – what it is like to walk on Karelian meadows on a hot summer day, how the warm and rough ground feels, and how the soil smells. I know what the heart of Karelia is, its temperament, culture, and nature.”
I also remembered many old Finnish songs, poems, places where I used to go as a child, and the word: kaiho.
They say that Karelian people often laugh and cry at the same time. We tend to get caught by emotions, and easily see polarities in them. So even if my painting has happy colors, it also has this kaiho, this longing, that’s unquenchable – that never leaves me.
I now believe we all have layers of longings. Under a sad layer, there can be a more joyful one. In a global world, each of us has many identities, many cultural impacts, and it’s easy to forget some of them. So when creating, we are not purely painting the longing what we are consciously aware of, but how we are truly built. With this natural integration, art has the power to make us feel more whole and grounded.
Finished Painting
“Is this the painting that needs a hanging wire,” my husband asked pragmatically the next morning.
When weather allows, I photograph my paintings outside.
This painting is 54 x 65 cm – about 21x 25,5 inches.
My Journey of Painting the Longing Continues
As a young woman, my mother got a book of poems which I now have. The book is called Ruiskukkaehtoo (Cornflower Night), and it’s written by Anna-Maija Raittila.
Ruiskukkaehtoo is also one of the poems, and my goal is to paint that! Not so much to illustrate the poem itself, but to express what comes to my mind from it. Even if it’s a poem and not a song, it has a captivating rhythm. I am pretty sure it will take me back to painting the longing.
Create with Me!
- See the new free mini-course Paint the Emotion! The painting of this post was made with pretty similar techniques.
- Stay tuned for a new class! I am working on the new class Floral Freedom. It’s about painting freely by using the principles of Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky. The registration will open in November.
- Sign up! Does music play a big role in your art-making? Sign up for Creative Junk Journal 2020 to get my mini-course about expressing your favorite music!
Paint the Emotion – New Free Mini-Course!
Here’s a teaser, do subscribe!
If you have already subscribed, check your inbox, I have sent the course to you today!
Art Journaling, Music, Giveaway!
In this blog post: A new class for art journalers and absolute beginners + a giveaway!
For a long time, I have been thinking about creating an art journaling class that would be geared for absolute beginners. Art journaling is where my creative rise started 10 years ago, and I still want to stay in touch with that. So when Tiare Smith asked me to join her Gratitude Junk Journal 2020 program, I was happy to say yes. We have 12 instructors, and each of us has picked a theme for a page. Mine is Music, and I absolutely loved making the class. It was a chance to express my gratitude for another inspiring art form, and help others do the same.
Gratitude Junk Journal – More About My Class
With this class, you’ll create music-inspired art journal pages based on one song or a collection of songs, learn about the similarities between music and visual art, and express togetherness – something we never have enough as artists and as human beings. We’ll first paint a musical landscape and then continue with the melody. I’ll show several examples and inspire you to try different songs for a page. My class includes scribbling, doodling, inking, coloring, and painting. It has 3 videos (about 1 hour total), but you’ll also get 11 more classes with the price.
Gratitude Junk Journal 2020 begins on Nov 1st
Register in October to get an early Bird Special of 20% off with code JOY2020 at checkout.
>> Buy Here!
Enter the Giveaway!
I also have one spot of Gratitude Junk Journal 2020 to give away! Leave a comment with your email in this post! (The email field won’t be published, but it helps me to contact the winner). In the comments, tell us one song that inspires you to create!
I will randomly pick a winner between those who wrote the name of a song. One entry per person, please! The last day to enter is October 7th (PDT), 2020. If you have purchased the class and win the spot, you will get a refund, so don’t worry about waiting too long!
>> Buy Here!
Can Fine Artists Craft? Can Crafters Make Art?
In this week’s post, I share my newest painting and other creative projects, and talk about linking art and crafts together.
Here’s my new painting called “Elämän nälkä – Hunger for Life.” It’s made in acrylics. and the size is 54 x 65 cm (about 21 x 25,5 inches). I started it before my dog Cosmo passed way, but it feels very timely, expressing how we want to live and survive, even if life is not in our control.
How I Created This Painting
My paintings often start with a specific color in mind, and this one was all blue in the beginning, and the orientation was vertical.
Then I turned it around and added more colors, then turned around again!
I wanted everything in this piece to be wild and free. It’s enjoyable to paint this way.
My favorite part of the painting is the top corner. It’s so sinister, and yet, so beautiful!
Here’s the whole painting again. I really like this one even if the atmosphere is gloomier than usual.
I always take the final photos before varnishing, because it’s easier to take pictures when the painting isn’t glistening. However, I love how the varnish makes the colors glow.
Painting Feels Different from Crafting
For me, creating art is a strange mixture of letting go and paying attention to the tiniest details. It’s like I am the mother and caretaker for my paintings, but can’t fully control the children’s personality and actions.
In my spare time, when quilting or knitting, it’s different. I can feel a sense of control, and I like it a lot. After saying goodbye to Cosmo, I sewed a quilt for Stella. I had the blocks ready, so the project was already half-way. About 20 years ago, I participated a quilt block lottery, where a group of quilters sewed similar kinds of blocks and happened to win them all. I had also sewn some more recently.
Art Inspiration from Crafting
My relationship for quilting and knitting has changed over the years. About 20 years ago, I thought that crafting is my way of creating art. But the more I got interested in painting and drawing, the less creative it felt. During the past 6 years, art-making and crafting have been strictly separated: visual art is the profession and crafting is the hobby.
This fall, my mindset has changed. I now realize that knitting is a way to give space for the internal processing that my paintings need. When I knit, my subconscious is sketching.
I love stranded knitting with many colors. My current project is Joji Locatelli’s All Together Sweater.
Here’s my current painting in progress. At least in this stage, it has some similarities with the sweater!
In general, I am more open to inspiration that I get from crafting, and vice versa. I made this quilt for my friend’s puppy.
Crafter, Craft Artist, Fine Artist – What’s Your Number One Creative Activity?
Many who create both art and crafts struggle with finding their style. For me, the working solution was to draw a clear line between the two. It made me see what things were missing in my artistic process, and what I needed to practice more. My artistic identity needed this isolation to make a clear hierarchy in what I create.
But now, I feel I can loosen up. Here’s what I wrote on Peony and Parakeet’s Facebook page last week:
“Art makes us more aware of what affects us and how we process it. Sometimes it means that we don’t want to immerse ourselves into something because it would not have a good impact on us. Other times it means that we want more of something because we know we need that. But for me, the most significant thing has been that accidental things happen, and I don’t need to filter everything. Both art and life run through us, and when the stream gets stronger, it will change not only us but our surroundings as well. When we say we want to loosen up, isn’t that what we really mean?”
This month, I have done a lot more than just creating canvas paintings. I am working on a new class about abstract art and Paul Klee’s teachings. I have talked about Paul Klee before, but now I am creating a class that translates his teachings to a more expressive style. Hopefully, the class is launching at the end of November, stay tuned!
I have also finished an art journaling mini-course for an artist collaboration project. It will be for sale in October – so very soon!
What’s Your Number One Creative Activity?
Here’s how I see myself now: I am a visual artist who creates abstract nature paintings mostly. I process my paintings by knitting, writing, art journaling, and doing daily walks. I live in a midcentury home, and my background is in design. I process my designs by growing plants and quilting. My paintings have design elements, and my designs have elements that are painted.
Painting is my number one thing. All the other activities serve it.
How would you define yourself through your creative activities? What’s your number one creative activity?