To celebrate the leap day I will note a few events from the beginning of the year as a reminder of those great experiences. First of all I had an exhibition in MUU Helsinki Contemporay Art Centre, Pondering with Pines – Conversations in Three Languages 7-21. January. The material from the exhibition is available on this RC-page. There was a conversation with Olga Cielemecka and Karoliina Lummaa in connection with the exhibition on 13 January. Moreover, I was selected an honorary member of Muu, together with Irma Optimist and Terike Haapoja and we celebrated that on 19 January. Listening with a Pine-mix (2023) was part of a one-day exhibition “Strolling Creatures of Light” in MUU on 26 January. Participating in Sanna Kekäläinen’s performance Auringonvihreä in the Helsinki Observatory, reading Gunnar Björling’s poems in their original language, Swedish, at the end of the show was a beautiful experience in another way on 25-27 January. In February I had an online lecture for MA students at Stockholm University of the Arts on 2 February, led a seminar for Norwegian doctoral candidates in artistic research in Oslo 7-9 February and participated in the pre-examination of a doctoral dissertation jointly organised by Tallinn University and Åbo Akademi on 15 February. And the seminar on auto-theory etc. at University of the Arts Helsinki continues a few more times on 24 January, 14 February and 14 March. The Muu Gala compilation was screened in Lappeenranta on 17 February, including my small video Day with a Pine (2020) although I could not go there to see it. Another short video of mine, Rakas Kuusi or Dear Pine (2020) is shown in a screening compiled by AV-arkki, the Distribution Centre for Finnish Media Art, “Trees & Destruction” at the Tampere shortfilm festival on 7 and 9 March. And I will go to Tampere as a first timer to marvel at the ways of the film world.
For me the start of the year usually means instigating new processes, as I did this time as well. Only my visits to the pine by Essingeleden motorway in Stockholm will continue from last year. In Helsinki I chose four new pine trees in January to visit once a month: The Pine of the Year in Kaivopuisto Park that I will “play” blues harp for, two pine trees on the shore in Kaivopuisto Park that I will chat with in English, a pine on the shore in Drumsö that I will address in Swedish and a pine on the shore in Mustikkamaa that I will speak Finnish with. Disappointments are unavoidable, as many applications receive negative responses, and so are small accidents – during the last weeks I have had my teeth repaired several times – but I have to say that the year has commenced well. Let’s hope the tailwind will continue…
 
 
 

Despite the gruesome wars going on in the world this was a peaceful year for me personally, involving some important developments, though. This was the second year of my TAIKE working grant; I have basically led a modest life and enjoyed the freedom to work at my own pace on the project Pondering with Pines, see project archive on the Research Catalogue and the three-lingual blog. An important event was creating a version of Animal Years on Harakka Island, that is, installing small plates with QR codes leading to examples of the videos on the sites where those videos were once performed, with the help of the curators Anna Jensen and Eliisa Suvanto of the exhibition Artists’ Island. See map here. Let’s see if they are still working in the spring.
A nice recognition was being chosen as one of the three Uniarts alumni of the year, see news here. The biggest event of the year on a personal level was finding a new second home in Stockholm, with the generous help of my brother and his wife. Thank you!
 
I did not accomplish everything I planned for the year, but something, and have listed some of the activities here below as if in a cv.
 
Solo exhibitions
Pondering with Pines – Miettii mäntyjen kanssa – Funderar med Furor, exhibition in the Telegraph Gallery on Harakka Island 6-18.6.2023. See Harakka website in Finnish
 
Works in Group shows
On the Birds’ Rock 1 & 3 in Merisilta in Oiva gallery on Särkkä 28.5.-15.9.2023, see merisilta_info
Animal Years and Animal Days and Nights in the exhibition The Artists’ Island on Harakka Island 1.9.-30.9.2023 See info in Finnish and pressrelease_ai23_eng
 
Works in screenings and compilations
Sunnuntait männyn kanssa [Sundays with a Pine], video at ESSE festival in Seurasaari, Helsinki 29.7.2023, see website
Day with the Firethorn Rhus as video poster at PSi #28 in Johannesburg 2-5.8.2023 (with support from The Finnish Cultural Foundation) see on Vimeo here
Day with a Bog Birch (with text) in a screening at CARPA 8 25.8.2023, see programme.
Day and Night of the Dog (2007) in Helsinki Biennial film screening: works from HAM’s collection, 21., 25, 30.8 and 14.9.2023. In various venues
Screening of Day with a Pine in a compilation for Muu Gala 18-21.10.2023, see here
Screening of Revisiting the Juniper video essay in the symposium Videographic Entanglements. University of Huddersfield 19-22.10.2023, see here
 
Performances
“Männylle” (To the Pine) performed as part of Nomadic Academy of Experimental Arts Presents: Impossible week: Analogy and magic. Harakka Island 27.5.2023 See video
 
Podcast episodes
Talking with Trees – Puhetta Puille – Talar med Träd on Soundcloud, here See the playlist Pondering with a Pine in the Park
 
Residencies
Residency in Mazzano Romano, thank you Väinö Tanner Foundation (see info in Finnish)
 
Peer reviewed articles
“Writing with a Pine: Addressing a Tree as Audience.” Näyttämö Ja Tutkimus, 9, 2023, 103–120. Retrieved from https://journal.fi/teats/article/view/127615 (the whole volume available here)
“Letters to a Pine: A Video Essay” in Performance Matters Vol. 9 No. 1-2 (2023): Performing Practice-Based Research, 78-87 https://performancematters-thejournal.com/index.php/pm/article/view/411
“Performing with Trees as Shifting Attention” in Figurations of Peripheries Through Arts and Visual Studies: Peripheries in Parallax. Edited by Maiju Loukola, Mari Mäkiranta and Jonna Tolonen. (Routledge 2023) See info here
 
Other research texts
“Moninaistuva taiteellinen tutkimus” [Differentiation of artistic research] see here and “Taiteellinen tutkimus tohtoriopintojen tuolla puolen – kasveista, puista ja prosessin tallentamisesta” [Artistic research beyond doctoral studies – on plants, trees and documenting process] see here, in Laura Gröndahl (ed.) Taiteellinen Tutkimus, [Artistic Research] Teatterikorkeakoulun julkaisusarja 76, 2023, Taideyliopiston Teatterikorkeakoulu, Helsinki [Uniarts Helsinki].
“Explorations with an Ash Tree” in HUB – Journal of Research in Art, Design and Society issue #0, see here and the whole issue here
 
Other texts
Contribution in Practice Sharing II online-publication, edited by Emma Cocker, Cordula Daus and Lena Séraphin. See here
“Performanssi, media ja katoava taide 80-luvulla” [performance art, media and ephemeral art in the 1980’s]. In Heidi Tikka, Petri Kuljuntausta, Tytti Rantanen, Minna Tarkka (eds.) Suomalaisen mediataiteen ensimmäinen vuosisata [The First Century of Finnish Media Art] Helsinki: Parvs. 2023, 139-40.
“I wanted a big stage and a small audience”, Uniarts alumna interview, see here.
 
Talks and presentations
“How to do things with artistic research – notes on diversification and in(ter)disciplinarity”, lecture at the winter school Integrative Humanities: Intersecting Art, Science, Nature and Technology, Tallinn University 23–27.1.2023.
“Perspectives” (via zoom) as part of Performing Landscapes Laboratorium, Copenhagen 27.1.2023
“On Documentation”, zoom lecture at SKH 1.2.2023.
“Approaching plants:Talking with Trees – Pondering with Pines”, presentation at the symposium Approaching Plants – Studying human-plant relations beyond disciplines, University of Würzburg 23-24.3.2023
“Is it too late to start talking with trees?” at SAR conference in Trondheim 19.-21.4.2023
“Pondering with Pines – Two examples” at Nordic Plant Humanities Symposium: Plants, People and Ecologies, University of Oulu (online) 7.6.2023
Presenting the exhibition “Pondering with Pines” on Helsinki Day 12.6.2023, see info about the day
Three contributions to the Artistic Research Working Group of PSi (Performance Studies international) online meetings 30.6., 30.7., and 30.8.2023 See documentation.
“Pondering with Pines or Pine for Par”, presentation in the Performance as Research Working Group of IFTR (International Federation for Theatre Research) at the conference in Accra 24-28.7.2023 (with support from The Finnish Cultural Foundation), see documentation
Presentation of video compilation (Joburg-mix) in the workshop of the Artistic Research Working Group of PSi (Performance Studies international) at the conference in Johannesburg 2-5.8.2023 (with support from The Finnish Cultural Foundation), see documentation
“Miettii mäntyjen kanssa” [Pondering with Pines], lecture in the series Artistic Research Today at open university of Uniarts Helsinki 9.10.2023
“Performanssista esitystaiteeseen ja työskentelyyn puiden kanssa” [from performance art to live art and working with trees], lecture for theatre research students at Helsinki University 18.10.2023
”Pondering with Pines – At the limits of relating”, conversation with Otso Aavanranta in Post-doc circle, Uniarts Helsinki 22.11.2023, see documentation
“From the Pine – Männyltä – Från tallen”, alumna talk at the graduation event of Theatre Academy, Uniarts Helsinki 15.12.2023. See here
 
Seminars and workshops
Norwegian Artistic Research School – seminar 2 in Voksenåsen, Oslo 8-10.2.2023
Seminar on autotheory, autofiction, autoetnography and performative writing for doctoral students at Uniarts Helsinki with Hanna Järvinen and Pilvi Porkola, during the autumn term 2023, and continuing in spring 2024.
Workshop “Parametric Methods and Temporality, or Constraints and Commitment: Creating your own Rules” with Alan O’Leary in the symposium Videographic Entanglements. University of Huddersfield 19-22.10.2023, see here
 
Conversations and moderating
Moderating at Lethe symposium, SKH (Stockholm University of the Arts) 2-4.3.2023.
Library Lunch talk, conversation with Eleanor Bauer at SKH (Stockholm University of the Arts) library 7.3. and 14.3. 2023. See recordings
Alumni conversation at Uniarts Helsinki 10 years celebration 22.9.2023.
 
 
Thank you to everybody – humans and pines – that I have had the opportunity to work and talk with!
 
 
 

And at the same time also an invitation to the opening of the exhibition Pondering with Pines – Conversations in Three Languages in Muu Contemporary Art Centre at Cable Factory 5 January 5 to 7 pm. For more information and the adress see Muu’s page, here.
 

 
 

Animal Years can now be viewed on Harakka Island via QR codes, thanks to the curators Anna Jensen and Eliisa Suvanto and the exhibition The Artists’ Island. Here below are snapshots of the locations of the QR codes. Most of them are on the spots where I performed, only a few are in places closer to the place of the camera tripod.

Looking back, my first impression of the past year was that besides the slow return to ‘normal’ life after the pandemic restrictions or the shock and horror of the war in Ukraine not much happened to me, personally. Some recently received rejections to various applications created the impression that I did not accomplish that much. When I look back at the list of events, talks and publications, the opposite is the case; I have to be grateful for the many invitations and opportunities during the year. Perhaps the main achievements, considering what I promised to do in my work plan for the TAIKE grant, are the exhibition in Forum Box in February and the publication of the book Performing and Thinking with Trees in December, both related to my previous project Meetings with Remarkable and Unremarkable Trees. The podcast Talking with Trees, which I experimented with already the previous year I have now actively worked with as part of my current project Pondering with Pines. Other exciting experiences, gifts of the year, were the Wood Art Residency Bodafors, the group residency In Light of Plants and performing in Epidermis by Sanna Kekäläinen. And yes, participating live in conferences in Weimar and Reykjavik and in the Bang Bang performance art festival in Basel and Seven of Sevenin Myymälä2 in Helsinki and yes, and many other events…Thank you to all of you!
 
I have listed the various activities in groups here below, in chronological order rather than with the latest on top as usual in a blog, mainly for the records, so to speak. When getting older I very easily forget what happened, when and where…
 
Solo exhibitions
Meetings with Spruces and Birches. Gallery Forum Box 11.2.-6.3.2022. See here
Dear Deceased in Mediaboxi, Gallery Forum Box 11.2.-6.3.2022. See here.
Revisiting the Pine and other video works. Telegraph gallery, Harakka Island 25.5.-5.6.2022. See here
Furorna i Bodafors [The Pines in Bodafors]. Malmsten school gallery in Stockholm 22.11.- 4.12.2022.
Works in Group shows
Year of the Pig with a Tatarian Maple (mini). Muu Media art fair 10.-25.9.2022. See here
Works in screenings and compilations
Dear Deceased at Vision Forum Helsinki – Emergence, Microbes, Governing bodies mini festival. See here in SOLU space 2.6.2022.
Konstrundan, open studio on Harakka Island 3-4.9.2022
Year of the Pig with a Tatarian maple (mini) in Muu’s compilation at Film Front festival, Novi Sad 29.10.2022. See here
Participating in Seeds-planting-art web collection, see here
 
Performances
“Practicing with Pines”, performance and videos as part of the event Seven of Seven, Myymälä2 26.4.2022. See Seven of Seven organised by Myymälä2 25.4.-1.5.2022. Documentation of streaming on Myymälä2 youtube channel, here.
“Pondering in the Park”, performance in Museum Tinguely Park, Basel 23.7.2022.
See program and documentation here
Performing in “Epidermis” by Sanna Kekäläinen 28.10.-6.11.2022. See here
 
Residencies
Wood Art Residency Bodafors (July-August 2022). See here (in Swedish) and experiments on the RC here
“In Light of Plants”, group residency at Saari, Mynämäki 2-14.7.2022. See plan here and an updated presentation here.
 
Podcast episodes
Talking with Trees – Puhetta Puille – Talar med Träd on Soundcloud. See playlists:
Talking to a Pine (HEL) (11 episodes), Talking to a Pine (STO) (11 episodes), Pondering with Örö Pines (6 episodes), Furorna i Bodafors (in Swedish, 7 episodes), Silakkarin männylle (in Finnish, 3 episodes)
 
Publications
The book Performing and Thinking with Trees, Art theoretical writings from the Academy of Fine Art 15, University of the Arts Helsinki. Online here: https://taju.uniarts.fi/handle/10024/7666
 
Peer reviewed articles
“Looking at (Overlooked) Lichen – Visual journaling as part of meetings with remarkable and unremarkable trees” Research in Arts and Education vol 1 (2022) pp. 75-82 https://doi.org/10.54916/rae.116978
“Kasvien performanssit: kasvit, esittäminen ja esiintyminen kasvien kanssa” [The performances of plants: plants, performing and appearing with plants] in Jukka Mikkonen, Sanna Lehtinen, Kaisa Kortekallio & Noora-Helena Korpelainen (eds.) Ympäristömuutos ja estetiikka [environmental change and aesthetics] Suomen Estetiikan Seura ry, Helsinki 2022, 470-497. Online for free download here
“Returning to the Stairs – on temporality and self-portraiture”. PARtake: The Journal of Performance as Research Vol.5 No.1 (2022), see here
 
Other texts
“Writing with Trees.” Proceedings of Carpa 7 – Elastic Writing in Artistic Research edited by Pessi Parviainen, Nivel 17 2022, see here
“Teaching Performance Art with Fluxus.” In Aapo Korkeaoja (edit) Performance Art in Practice – Pedagogical Approaches, Worthwise 2022, p 66-85. See here
“How should I write about my work? Notes on publishing artistic research.” jar-online.net. 29/12/2022. https://doi.org/10.22501/jarnet.0059
 
Talks and presentations
Seminar for doctoral candidates (Norwegian national program), Oslo 2-4.2.2022
On Artistic Research (for doctoral candidates), SKH Stockholm 10.2.2022
On Documentation (for MA students), SKH Stockholm 9.2.2022
On Collaboration and Networking, post doc circle of Performing Arts Research Centre Tutke, University of the Arts Helsinki 3.3.2022
“Kasvit ja esitys” [Plants and Performance], talk at the seminar on environmental aesthetics organised by the Finnish Society for Aesthetics at TSV house (and online) 17.5.2022.
Contribution to the online symposium Designing the Pluriversity organised by Arizona State University 19.5.2022.
Contribution as part of the Artistic Research Working Group presentation at the Performance Philosophy conference in Helsinki 16.6.2022
“Shifting the focus in performance as research”, contribution at the Performance as Research Working Group meeting at the IFTR conference in Reykjavik 21.-24.6.2022.
“Attending to remarkable and unremarkable trees”, workshop at the SAR (Society for Artistic Research) conference in Weimar 30.6.-3.7.2022.
“Pondering with Pines”, contribution at the Artistic Research Working Group meeting 6-7.7.2022 as part of the PSI online conference 6-9.7.2022.
Conversation on performance as research, Museum Tinguely Park, Basel 24.7.2022
“Planting Ideas for Vegetal Humanities and Art Research” as part of Environmental Humanities Month at Helsinki University, 11.10.2022
“Revisiting the Pines on Skifferholmen” in the workshop composting methodologies at SSAM (Speculative spaces for artistic methods) 3.11.2022
“Furorna i Bodafors”, talk at the Malmsten school 22.11.2022
“Voiko puita puhutella?” [can you address trees?] at the autumn days of the Finnish Society for Theatre Research 25.11.2022
Presentation at the book launch, Kuva Research days, University of the Arts Helsinki 14.12.2022.