Environmental art: workshops at UNESCO- science camp, Hailuoto 2024
Art workshops at a UNESCO - science camp, Hailuoto 2024
Thank you to Mervi and everyone making this event happen, and thank you to participants!
This week me and my "colleague" Viivi Kuljuntausta had an opportunity to be a part of an international UNESCO - science camp in Hailuoto. The main themes of the camp were sustainable development and the Baltic Sea, and the participants were from Finland, Germany and Estonia, ranging from age 13 to 18. During 2 days, we held 3 art workshops under the title: My kind of Sea. Together with the students, we dove into the world of environmental art, nature art, performative art and many more. It was a truly an enjoyable experience to get to work with these bright-minded participants.
My kind of sea - pt 1: Building a bird's nest sculpture of willow
In the first workshop we collected and used local willow to build a seabird's nest, using the problem solving skills of the participants on the design. First we gathered outside next to a lighthouse, and split into groups: some of us went to collect willow, while the rest stayed to build the base of the nest. During 3 hours we changed the roles here and there, some collecting materials, some making smaller bundles of willow and reed while others used these bundles to weave filling to the nest. The collecting of the willow gave us an opportunity to discuss the ethics of the material - how it is invading these areas and the hotel had planned to get rid of it. In the end we had built a nest with a fun design of a round shape and an open entry.
My kind of sea - pt 2: Sea-themed mobiles out of natural resources
On the second workshop we crafted our own sea-themed mobiles from nature's materials. We begun with a short introduction and taking a look at some reference pictures. After that we continued by getting to know the nearby area by walking around, and collecting loose materials for the mobiles. We had a realxing time walking and getting to know the beaches and nature areas. Crafting time flew by, and the result of unique mobiles blew us teachers' minds. With the help of a few participants we were able to find strong pine branches to hang the mobiles from, and finally we found a place to hang the art works near to a walking path.
My kind of sea - pt 3: Emotions about the environment
The third workshop was about discussion, environmental emotions and creating a performative video artwork. This time we had the privilege to get Ritva Rundgren to join our workshop with her warm spirit and her polar bear. (Ritva is a retired teacher and The Mrs. Santa Claus!) First we talked about different forms of art: performance art, earth art, activist art, and ways to create change. We wrote down our fears and dreams about the environment and it's changes, and recorded these for our video. Then we created video material outside and inside a fire place building. Maybe the most symbolic part of the process was inside this building, where we threw these fear-papers to the fire one by one while recording a video of it. Fire is a strong symbol, which can be associated to many things, for example the climate change itself, or change in general, like letting go of something. The papers, that had our hopes written in them ended up as a hopeful poster, with a touch of fire as design: thanks to the creative minds of our participants.
Here's a link to the video:
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