Text: Anselmi Petäjäaho, University of Lapland
Summary
In the house mark workshop, participants designed their personal house marks, which were then cut as large stencils on sturdy paper. The stencils were then brought outside into the snow, where the marks were realised using fine ash. Finally, the completed stencils were hung on display on one of the school’s dining room walls.
The main topic for the workshop was humanity’s relationship with nature and how we interact with it. How do we move in nature? What type of tracks and marks do we leave behind us? From there, the idea formed that we could make environmental art sustainably, which slowly morphed into the concept of using ash with stencils. The house mark concept was present in the workshop from the beginning, but initially it was going to be a workshop where the participants would make seals, with which they could imprint their mark on the undisturbed snow. After it became clear that the seal concept was unfeasible on a smaller scale, I got the idea to use ash from a relative.
Ash was pretty much the ideal material for the project. It’s environmentally friendly, as it is often used as fertiliser to grow crops. Additionally, it is fairly dark, hence it stands out clearly when poured on snow. Finally, it is an excellent powder, which was crucial to using stencils. After pouring it onto the stencil, the excess ash was easily removed along with the stencil, leaving a clean mark on the snow.
“The house mark workshop was a very illuminating experience as an organizer. During the discussions I had with the school’s teachers I was informed that the Sami people have a long tradition of ownership marks, which they use to denote their property, like tools, utensils and dishes. This came as a surprise to me, as I had not come across the tradition in any of the written documents about the Sami culture. It goes to show how poorly the Sami culture, and their traditions have been documented outside their own cultural sphere.”
Anselmi Petäjäaho, workshop teacher, art education master student
