Tiina Pehkonen

Icelandic dramaturg Andrea Elín Vilhjálmsdóttir and artist Anna Katrín Einarsdóttir visited Finland for 15 days in February with Hyrynsalmi based producer Tiina Pehkonen as their local host. The creative excursion was supported by the EU through I-Portunus mobility support for artists.

Andrea and Anna — responsible creatives for sparking up Plöntutíð festival in Iceland – met with Tiina in order to put up a Finnish-Icelandic take on the eco-centric performance art festival. Plöntutíð (e.Plant Times) was founded in Reykjavík as an experiment to form a new community that would facilitate artists to develop works and showcase experiments that take an eco-centric point of view.

In Finland the team spent time familiarising themselves with the local scene, meeting artists and locals both onsite and online in Hyrynsalmi and in Helsinki. During the visit, the project seedling evolved into a concrete plan for organising the Kasviaika festival in Hyrynsalmi, on 13th-14th August 2022 in collaboration with the international artist residency and arts association Mustarinda. Later this spring six Finland based artists will be chosen for the festival through an open call. In Kasviaika festival the artists get to share their experimental, plant centred artworks with the local community and other visitors.

While scouting locations in Hyrynsalmi the team discussed in detail the motivations and goals for organising this kind of festival. What is there to gain for each participant, for the artists and the audience? Our idea is to explore how artists in different ecosystems are working within this frame of plant centred performance making. The hope is for the Kasviaika festival to leave a trace of new connections between humans and nature and new connections within artist’s communities.