M HKA Ensembles

Object, variable dimensions.

Collection: Courtesy of the artist.

Laakkonen’s new work, still in progress, also began with a journey. He first cut a tree and purchased wool from a farm in almost exclusively Swedish-speaking Korsnäs by the Bothnian Sea. Then he repeated the process in almost exclusively Finnish-speaking Ilomantsi near the border with Russian Karelia. The wood is carved into a traditional standing loom, the wool hand-spun to become the woof of a future weave. Laakkonen will travel the distance between the two settlements to collect smaller batches of wool from different farms, which will become the warp threads, and to find objects to weigh them down. He will fashion the resulting fabric into a garment and wear it as he retraces his steps a third time to return the borrowed objects. The work is based on interaction with the people who live and work along Laakkonen’s route, and on their knowledge of their own land. (AK)