On a search for a form!

 

Re3 Apolda 2.4.-6.4.2014.

First there was a blank scarf.
It was crinkled and mixed in a pot
yellow as the sun, white as the snow
in different tones mixed, washed, dried…

It travelled by land
It travelled by air
to be shaped to a textile rose.

Even though it looked finished

there was still something missing.

What?
We just have to wait and see.

Re3 Forssa 28.8.-31.8.2014.

 

On 28.-31. August 2014 Re3 -project members gathered to Forssa to meet and get to know the local heritage, textile and take part on local Art Häme event. Our guests arrived on Thursday 28. August and on the first day in the program was visit to Art Häme opening in the Community Hall, taking part on Moron-tossu and textile flower workshops and in the evening welcoming party. Before the party we went to the A. W. Wahren statue and strewed the statue with flowers made on daytime in the flower workshop, to honor his legacy.

In the welcoming party our quests got a glimpse of the local history through participatory drama in the museum´s exhibition. First they had to find a traveler´s bag, look inside it and think, what kind of person could have owned the bag. Strange enough, while they were thinking about it, a strainger joined the group and he started to wonder why we were all around his bag. We were busted, but luckily he did not mind it and instead of wondering, we got a chance to ask directly from him. Where he comes from? Why he was here?

We found out, that he came from Tammela and was looking for a work in the factory. He was not a man but a boy, an orphan, 14 years old. The drama ended on a game, where it was established that non of us could get work from the factory and we continued the evening on discussion and local food.

On the second day, we guided our guests to the history of the Weaving Mill area and also we went for a visit to Tasapaino, Finlayson outlet and Outi Silfvenius atelier. We wer not only walking and looking around, no, in Tasapaino we had a opportunity to press our own linen.

Later on the day our Polish and German Re3 -members presentated the project and themselves to locals in Forssa museum, took part on the Silent film festival and for the evening headed to a internation dinner with music and good food.

On the third day, our guests had possibility to take part on the Art Häme and Silent film festival events as they wished and in the afternoon we made a trip to the Korteniemi Heritage farm to think the project future around a camp fire.

All the good comes alway to an end and also our Re3 meeting in Forssa. The final fourth day came and we headed to Turku to see the castle, ships and international market and form there to the Helsinki airport.

Overall we had wonderfull time and creative new ideas... eagerly waiting for the next meeting in Poland.

Text: Minna Lehtola

Smoke sauna and finnish history!

Forssa, Korteniemi Heritage Farm 30.8.2014

On Saturday we wanted to show to our Re3 quests local tradition and culture in Korteniemi Heritage Farm. We took a mini bus, traveled to Korteniemi to learn about everyday life at a forest ranger’s estate in the 1910s. 

 

The area’s cultural landscape is maintained at the farm through traditional farming methods.

Old traditionally Finnish crops are farmed in both the estates gardens and fields.

Our guide is telling us the local history.

We were lucky with the weather, it was warm and sunny.

The guides taught people in the heritage farm, how to make jewels using serviceberry.

The scenery in the farm was like in the old Finnish movies.

Earlier on the day rye was cut with scythes, dried on racks and threshed with flails in the drying barn.

The drying barn in the Korteniemi heritage farm.

The visit gave a glimpse, how people used to live in Forssa.

One of the guides cutting the grass.

The guides also showed us, how the textile used to be dyed in boiling water.

They had been dyeing the whole day in the heritage farm.

They dip the textiles in the boiling coloring mixture.

The colored textiles were hangin all around the estate.

The colored textile created an atmosphere, as there still would have been residents in the heritage farm.

In the heritage farm there is also a two layer smoke sauna.

The smoke sauna used to be used also for draining.

On Saturday the smoke sauna had been warm the whole day for visitors.

After the guided tour, we also experienced the smoke sauna and swam in the lake.

Visit in the heritage farm brought our quests also closer to the Finnish nature.

The landscape in this part of Finland is flat but there is lots of forests.

During summer the heritage farm is home to indigenous Finnish farm animals: horses, cows, sheep, chickens and a rooster.

But when the autumn comes and the farm is closed, also the animals are taken to another place.

The animals are friendly and people may get acquantaince of.

 

In the Heritage Farm there is also nice place to make a fire.

We made a fire to our guests.

We relaxed around the fire and planed the projects future.

Also ate some sausages and drink beverages.

The Finnish life: sauna and makkara.

Also, what would a campfire be without singing together?

Pictures: Tanja Härmä

Text: Minna Lehtola

Weaving Mill area!

Forssa, Weaving Mill area in past and present 29.8.2014

guided by Outi Silfvenius

On Friday we went with our guests to the Weaving Mill area to see, how the Weaving mill area lives on! The Idea was to introduce the area, its history and architecture, visit in an exhibition, show how the old buildings are reused and by activating on doing, tell how the textile heritage and design continues in the area and lives on.

The areas exhibition is in the corridore to Tasapaino and Outi Silvfenius atelier.

There is old maps from the area in the exhibition.

Our guide Outi Silvfenius. She used to work as a designer in Finlayson.

The Weaving Mill area is large and today part of it is a shopping mall. 



Some of the old factory buildings are now empty.



The machinery is taken away and there is space for new ideas.



Forssa is above all known for printed textile.



The industrial textile printing began in Forssa in 1861.

In Forssa was the first mill in Finland on industrial textile printing.



The Golden years on printing textile in the factory was in 1950-70´s.

Several people have walked in this area and made their mark in its history.

Almost 150 years continual industrial textile printing finished in 2009.

 

The Old weaving mill.

This factory building was completed for use in 1878.

Wiksberg´s weaving mill began operation here in 1855, eight years after the establishment of a spinning mill Forssa.

In 1859, the spinning and weaving mill combined as  Forssa Company.

Today in the old weaving mill building is a Fitness center.



The Weaving Mill´s power plant was build in 1924.

The buildings in the area were extended several times in 1800 and 1900's.

To the Weaving Mill area is a nice view from the Fitness center.

In the are, there used to be an automatic weaving company, since 1951.

At best, there was 1500 machines weaving.

From the time of Finlayson in the area, the only thing which remained is Finlayson Outlet.



The selection in the store is Finlayson bed linens and daytime textiles, Familon duvets and pillows, Finlayson fabrics and Low-priced discount sets.

Pictures: Tanja Härmä

Text: Minna Lehtola