THE BEAUTY OF SIMPLICITY — Suomen Lasimuseo

- Johanna Lindfors visited the exhibition of Helmi Remes and Panu Ruotsalo at the Glass Museum and discussed the works with the glass artist.

As I step into the large exhibition hall of the Finnish Glass Museum, I took a deep breath. There is something very soothing in front of me and at the same time completely familiar - as if the works in the hall were for me; the landscape of my thoughts. It is easy for the Finnish soul to understand the works on display; they are clean, simple, beautiful. Helmi Remes' and Panu Ruotsalo's joint exhibition ‘Anatomy of Longing’ explains the spiritual serenity of the northern nature and the feelings of the mankind. Something that is perhaps in our core but is often left unsaid.

‘Yes, we decided to dare - to do this in black and white, even if no one else agrees’, says Helmi Remes in November. ‘The feeling that arises from this building supports the whole. We also intentionally constructed a really dramatic lighting - no general light at all. In a dim weather, this actually works best.’

There is drama in the exhibition; Remes and Ruotsalo even sought after a sort of theatrical atmosphere. The joint works combine wood and glass in a masterful way, almost magically. The viewer is left wondering how the hot glass mass encounters wood. What kind of is the fire mark left by the glass? Why are the wooden parts black all over, even if the glass hasn’t touched them? The glass pieces are glued to the wood, and not manufactured simultaneously. The seeming smoothness of the wood tempts you to slide your hand on its surface; to try to see if there is any roughness in the glass mass?

‘We chose a few of our first ideas which we set out to work on. And those were just these ‘Anatomy of Longing’ works. At first, when carving the wood, we did not yet know what shape it would take. The work was born alongside the process. And as we worked on these three, we began working on other pieces as well. Everything seemed to move forward as if naturally. This is what we wanted to achieve.’

The mouth-blown glass objects and parts of the works are made by Kaappo Lähdesmäki and Jaakko Liikanen. Helmi Remes has made the furnace techniques’ works herself.

On that gray morning, there is also another visitor in the exhibition. The lady examines the works diligently, stops in front of them and reflects. Realizing that one of the artists is present, she is delighted.

‘This is absolutely unbelievable! In this situation in my life, this exhibition really touches me!’

As a spectator, she finds the work ‘Anatomy of Grief’ as the most impressive. The interpretation indicates how we always experience art very personally. As I have studied the work as progressing the cubes (with black cloud-like-forms) from the smaller form to the larger one, the lady had seen it from larger to smaller.

‘That grief disappears quietly and finally one will become herself again.’

‘We are inspired by nature a lot’, Helmi says. ‘The bare and rugged, and those black stone landscapes on the Norwegian coast, are behind our design language."

Everything is so organic and quiet, almost sacred. The glass rods suspended from the ceiling form a mountain stream into which light strikes, reflected on the back wall. In their works, Helmi Remes and Panu Ruotsalo have sought to achieve and present an experience that can be encountered quietly and privately.

When I leave the hall, I am grateful for my morning. I agree with the lady visiting the exhibition. How can gray November and these different shades of dark feel so bright and impressive? It is perfect to breathe in quietly for a while in a space like this - as I get out, the world feels a little more peaceful place.

The exhibition ‘Anatomy of Longing’ is open at the Glass Museum until the end of the year.

Text: Johanna Lindfors