The Rievdan core team: Professor and Rievdan project leader on the right, in the middle coordinator and post-doctoral researcher Korinna Korsström-Magga, and on the left Jalvvi Mari Ante, Ante Jalvela, M.A., research assistant. Photo: Mirja Hiltunen (2025).

The Rievdan core team is familiar with life in the far North. The project’s leader, Professor Mirja Hiltunen from the Faculty of Art and Design at the University of Lapland, and Korinna Korsström-Magga, post-doctoral researcher and coordinator of the Rievdan project, have both lived in the region for over 30 years. Jalvvi Mari Ante, also known as Ante Jalvela, the project’s research assistant, comes from Utsjoki, the northernmost part of Finland.

Still, establishing contact and building trust with participants in a short time can be challenging. That’s where our collaborators come in — they help us reach out to the people of Kárášjohka and Vuohčču.

The first step for Rievdan was to find strong local partners in Sápmi — individuals and organizations who understand the local context and community, and who we could collaborate with and rely on throughout the project. On the Finnish side, we found such partners in Mánnu, the Sámi Culture Centre for Children, and the Sámi Youth Council, both operating under the Finnish Sámi Parliament (https://samediggi.fi/en/). These partners have been contributory in helping Rievdan connect with schools and residents in Vuohčču. In Vuohčču, we organized art workshops at the local school, which often serves as a communal activity centre for the village.

In Kárášjohka, we are working with Sámi Dáiddaguovddáš (SDG), the Sámi Center for Contemporary Art (https://samidaiddaguovddas.no/). The centre functions as an ideal meeting place for the project. Its venues are well suited for hosting art workshops, and it offers participants access to engaging, high-quality art exhibitions.

The Sámi Center for Contemporary Art is located in the heart of Kárášjohka. In the photo: Virve Pietilä (at front) and Antti Jalvela (in the background). Photo: Korinna Korsström-Magga (2025).

Photo: Korinna Korsström-Magga (2025).

The venues at the Vuohčču school also served larger workshop groups of school-aged children. 

Thanks to the knowledge, commitment, and support of our partners in Sápmi, we’ve had an exceptional start to the Rievdan project. We immediately felt welcomed and at home in both Kárášjohka and Vuohčču.

View of Kárášjohka, photo: Kasper Kujansuu (2025)

This project was something we could hardly anticipate in advance. We had never worked with the other participants involved in this project before, so it was a special and unique opportunity to encounter them around a shared cause. The project took off quickly for us, and we are very happy to have been part of it. It gave us the chance to develop and explore how art can be used to bring people together and address the complex theme of change — a theme that affects us all. However, the project especially focused on change in the North, a context with which we had little prior experience. In practice, our trip to Kárášjohka and Vuohčču showed us how artistic activity can generate conversations and deep reflections on how to respond to change — and whether it is good or bad. Most importantly, the discussions opened up possibilities for how we can potentially influence change and be active agents within it.

We had the opportunity to get to know Kárášjohka and Vuohčču, both places we had never visited before. We did some initial research using texts and maps, but we learned so much more directly from the people who live there — far more than we could have ever gathered from written sources. Artistic work provided us with a way to approach both Kárášjohka and Vuohčču as places, helped us connect with new people, and offered us perspectives to carry forward. Each day was exciting, and we never knew quite what to expect, but the encounters in both Kárášjohka and Vuohčču were eye-opening and educational. As the workshop days progressed, our initial nervousness faded, and we both felt comfortable participating and assisting in the sessions.

It was absolutely wonderful to see how eagerly all the groups took part — both in the warm-up exercises and in the artistic work and conversations. The groups were skilled and full of energy, and they gave us a lot to think about. The topics that emerged in the discussions were fascinating, and we hope to hear even more from them in the future. Overall, the diversity and similarity of people’s experiences came through in how they spoke about the changes happening — and those already experienced — in their home communities of Kárášjohka and Vuohčču. This gave us new perspectives on approaching northern culture and understanding local views on change.

The creative work produced in the workshops was incredibly impressive, and the conversations held were full of interesting and important perspectives — many of which we had never considered. This enriching opportunity to take part in the project gave both of us a great deal to reflect on and sparked many conversations during our shared drives, based on the topics that arose. It was a great start to the project and set the tone for the entire initiative. We look forward to future moments of collaboration, and even if we don’t meet again with the same assembly, it was truly a joy to be part of this project!

-Kasper and Virve (students from the faculty of Arts and Design of Lapland University)