Cave art
The first occupants of Lapland produced the Alta rock engravings (6,000 BC) just a stone's throw from the Arctic Circle. Thousands of paintings and engravings, in an excellent state of preservation, shed light on the environment and activities of the prehistoric era on the edge of the Far North. Human and animal representations on the walls suggest exchanges between the world of the living and the world of the spirits. These hunter-gatherers also depicted dances, processions and shamanic rituals. Stunning landscapes provide the backdrop for scenes of hunting, fishing and boat crossings. Among the animals, the polar fauna is dominated by reindeer and bears, fish and whales. Sami rock art is characterized by a great variety of motifs and a rare artistic quality, combining figuration and symbolic richness. The Alta Museum exhibits everyday and ritual objects fashioned over the centuries.
From the very beginning, the Saami people were animists. Mountains, lakes and trees were endowed with souls. Their worlds (heaven for the gods, earth for men and animals, and underground for the dead) were populated by gods and goddesses. The pivotal figure in their society was the "noaidi" or shaman, the intermediary between man and the divine. Music was used to bring them together. Very early on, the bear and the reindeer became the essential symbols of this culture. From the 16th century onwards, the government set out to control the territory and its population, and to this end dispatched missionaries. Forced Christianization had a severe impact on the Sami people, whose religion was banned for centuries. It wasn't until 1960 that Saami culture began a renaissance, to the sound of the joik.
Modern Era
The artistic spirit of the Saami has never wavered. Several names stand out at the end of the 19th century. The drawings of Nils Nilsson Skum (1872-1951) tell the story of his life as a reindeer herder. Aukusti Tuhka (1895-1973) is considered the master of lithography. After an early start in Viipuri, he became the pioneer of Scandinavian graphic design, and was recognized as an outstanding art teacher. He founded his own school from which major Scandinavian artists emerged. 35 of his works are part of the Sipilä collection at the Rovaniemi Museum.
A champion of Lappish art, Jon Savio de Varanger (1902-1938) illustrated Lappish life with an exquisite sense of detail. His watercolors, engravings, paintings and woodcarvings are preserved in the Savio Museum in Kirkenes, Norway. Orphaned at an early age, as an adult he travelled the counties of Troms and Finmark to capture the movement of a lasso, the expression on a face or the running of reindeer. After a stay in Paris, where he tried to make a living from his art, he ended his days in Oslo, where tuberculosis took his life prematurely.
Lars Pirak (1932-2008) exercised his talent in oil painting, watercolor, writing, joik and sculpture. Throughout the world, the revival is embodied by Nils Aslak Valkeapää, whose writings and music spread Saami culture abroad.
Lapland fascinated photographers in the 1970s, particularly those with a documentary bent and a strong attachment to black and white. The style became more refined, with unvarnished shots showing a little-known people in infinite landscapes. Some photographers explore as far as Karelia, Iceland or Poland. Finns Matti Saanio (1925-2006) and Jorma Puranen (b. 1951) are among those who have captured the soul of Lapland. From his encounter with the Sami people, Matti Saanio produced the series Lapin eiliset kuvat or Images of Yesterday's Lapland.
Rebellion
Embodied by Máret Anne Sara, born in 1983, a protest movement carries the voice of the Sami people. The artist's actions echo those of her brother. Street art and protest art intermingle in the Stortorget district, where her monumental structure stands. Other artists join his actions, which have become weekly. Ander Sunna and Linda Zina Aslaksen, for example, created a fresco around the skull motif dear to Máret Anne Sara. Their skull-based installations, or Pile o'Sápmi, call for the protection of reindeer. They follow in the footsteps of the O'bones piles, pyramids of bison skulls piled up on Amerindian lands. They raise awareness of the need to preserve the grazing lands essential to the survival of the reindeer and its people.
The painter and graffiti artist Anders Sunna, born in 1985 in Jukkasjärvi, is well known in the Arctic Circle. His canvases, stencils and collages tell the story of Saami herders. In his realistic portraits and scenes, he combines natural beauty with a call for change.
Founded in 2012 by Norwegian artist Pøbel, Komafest, Vardø's urban art festival, draws attention to the village's depopulation due to the decline in fishing. Dozens of buildings adorned with murals make up an unusual itinerary.
Nowadays
Lapland is bursting with creativity. Pirkko Mäkelä-Haapalinna is just one of the many talented artists who follow in the footsteps of her ancestors by linking art and nature. She welcomes visitors to her studio in Kemijärvi.
Merja Aletta Ranttila, a Saami artist recognized in Finland and abroad, lives in Inari. Born in 1960, she studied art in Tornio, Lapland. Her works, depicting strong women in a wilderness setting, speak to us of the Arctic.
An illustrator in her early days, Ranttila superimposed dark symbolic figures that earned her accusations of Satanism. She then lightened her palette, but added notes of humor to her works. Her strikingly expressionistic self-portraits are typical of the Nordic school.
Every August, Kakslauttanen attracts artists from all over the world for Arctic Arts Week. Sculptors, painters and other artists come to immerse themselves in the environment and unleash their creativity. A special feature is that the works produced remain on site for future visitors to enjoy. Perhaps you?
