Category Archives: Travelling

London & Brussels

I had the luxury of visiting London and Brussels last week. First we worked two days in London with the ANTI Festival’s core team; me, Laura and Gregg. We are so used to Skype and email that it felt so luxurious to actually be in the same physical space. And we accomplished so much! There are a million big & small details to discuss and decide with the festival programme which we are hoping to launch in the end of the month or in the beginning on June. So I was so pleased with our meeting. Very useful. And it was great to see Gregg, sniff the air of London a little bit and see my friends’ house for the first time. Inspiring!


Gregg pointing out that he’s having tea while me & Laura are enjoying something else…



We were there just a day before the royal wedding so I had to buy a Will & Kate T-shirt. When I was buying it on Oxford Street, I got interviewed for French TV. They asked me why I bought it and I said because it’s so kitsch. Probably not the right answer! We also had a lovely dinner in a wonderful tapas place with Laura in Soho. By the way, if you are in London, check out FrenchMottershead’s photographic exhibition in the Photographers’ Gallery. Saw some images before they went to print and they looked very intriguing.

From London we took the Eurostar to Brussels. It was my first time on Eurostar and I was amazed how quick and easy it is! Less than two hours and you are in Brussels. It feels like a miracle comparing to Finland where it takes four hours for me to get even to Helsinki….

In Brussels we had A Space for Live Art project meeting with all the partners. The meeting was during the Trouble Festival so evenings we spent watching works. Rosie Dennis was doing her Downtown project there and it was great to see her working in a different context, different city and language. She performed in Les Halles but I must say that I really preferred her shows in Kuopio as they were not hidden in some art space. Also the work of Mitch & Parry was great.

We had a wonderful time with Laura. The weather was great, +23 degrees and we enjoyed the city a lot. On Saturday afternoon we had a little time to pop into the city centre for shopping. I brought Laura to the Pierre Marcolini chocolate shop… I didn’t remember how amazing the chocolate really is! It blows your mind. Laura will probably hate me forever for bringing her to the Cora Kemperman shop…where we both did some shopping. Again we had wonderful tapas and on Sunday just amazing mussels in La Pré Salé. Oooh. Unforgettable.




La Pré Salé:





1st of May:

Laura’s Belgian waffle:


This week has been hard trying to adjust to the normal rhythm. Every time I’m away and then come back home, I feel that so much work has piled up I don’t know where to start. But I’ve been happy cycling, going to Zumba and getting my energy flowing. Tomorrow I’m looking forward to Functional Training with Pipsa and on Saturday a Zumba marathon with Outi! Yeah.

Johanna

 

ARS11 opening & Helsinki

As you know, I went to the opening of ARS11 exhibition last week in Kiasma, Helsinki. Here’s some pictures of the night.





Tarja Halonen opening the exhibition:

Our friend’s Hannu’s & Irene’s cat Neppu:

A slow morning:

Meeting with Mladen & Bruno:

Great, inspiring trip.

Johanna

lovely Sunday morning

What a nice morning! +10 celcius degrees, sunny although a bit windy. I decided to take a risk and test how my operated knee feels about running. I wore my Nike Free trainers and run about 40mins. I wanted to take it very easy so I walked a few minutes in the beginning and was able to run without stopping after that. What a great feeling! My knee did hurt a little bit a few times but not so much that I would have had to stop. Also the kind of stinging pain went away so I’m not really able to analyze what causes it. I think I just have to let the knee to get used to running very, very slowly. I’m also thinking that maybe the very light trainers without any extra support actually work best for my knee. Don’t know. Anyway, I felt happy and strong and I can really feel all that functional training and Kinesis workouts in the strength of my legs. Running itself feels easy and light, it’s just the knee that is troubling me.

After my run I had a quiet breakfast reading Helsingin Sanomat and enjoying gorgeous pecan bread that I bought in Maatilatori in Helsinki. So delicious! It was really inspiring to spend a few days in Helsinki. I went to the opening of ARS11 in Kiasma with Pekka, saw Lea & Pekka Kantonen’s exhibition in Taidehalli and hang out with my daughter. Lovely. Unfortunately I couldn’t stay to see Maija Hirvanen’s new choreography in Zodiak but hopefully I will have a chance to see it somewhere else soon.

Today I have some writing, budgeting and thinking to do. Also my home office is waiting to get organized a bit better…

Johanna

 

ANTI business and other stuff

These last weeks have been very busy with the upcoming ANTI Festival. This is the time when we need to make final decisions about the programme, confirm sites, think about all kinds of details in terms of artists, sites, how audiences move between the works and sites etc. etc. And this year is of course special as it is the 10th anniversary of ANTI – Contemporary Art Festival. Later during the spring we will let you know about the plans we’ll have for this special edition of ANTI. So stay tuned! In the meantime, make sure you’ll visit our Facebook page to hear the latest news and keep with the upcoming campaigns!

I’ve been preparing a new collaboration with Rebecca French from FrenchMottershead. We’ll begin to work in June when Rebecca comes to Kuopio and although there’s a million things to sort out and do before that, I’m still looking forward to it all soooo much.

Later in April I’ll visit Brussels as we have A Space for Live Art project meeting during the Trouble Festival. I’ll be travelling with ANTI Festival’s producer Laura and we’ll also work a couple of days in London with Gregg.

Last weeks have been great for cycling in Kuopio! The snow has melted away from the streets so no need to worry about the icy roads anymore. I’m so in love with my new bike and the Ortlieb back panniers. So useful and beautiful! The only downfall is that the roads haven’t been cleaned up yet and it can be pretty dusty riding down the streets. But it still feels great!

Johanna

Weekend trip to Copenhagen

About four months ago I decided with my friend Maija that we will take an extended weekend holiday away from home, work and family. I had a small amount of award points to use for my flight so Copenhagen became our destination. And we both love Copenhagen! I think I was there in 2008 for the last time and Maija has also visited the city many times.

So what is so great about Copenhagen? The atmosphere is relaxed, people seem happy, mellow and content. They seem to have time to enjoy slow brunches, they cycle everywhere, everyone speaks English, you see a lot of families and fathers pushing prams and after their Sunday morning runs, the Danes go and buy fresh bread, buns and croissants in their local bakeries. The climate is a bit warmer than in Finland and it was great to get a taste of the spring! The life has spread more out into the streets with cafes, shops, bars and picnics. Copenhagen is compact, clean and easy to navigate, Danish design is present almost everywhere and the Kastrup airport is possibly the best in the world.

So if you love to hang out in cafes, enjoy gorgeous brunches, are a lover of design and like the feeling of cities like Amsterdam and Berlin, Copenhagen is the best destination. The only downfall is that Copenhagen is one of the most expensive cities in the world and everything is more expensive than in Finland.

And of course I was so delighted to be travelling with Maija and we had a great time! Maija had brought the latest Mondo with its tips for best brunches in Copenhagen and we had two wonderful brunches. On the first morning we went to Kalaset and on the second to Café Sokkelund, which was selected the “Byens Bedste Brunch” in 2010. I really enjoyed both of them but maybe Kalaset a bit more. On our last morning we wanted to have a breakfast in Granola but it wasn’t open yet and instead we had a great coffee and sandwich in a local neighborhood bakery. On Saturday evening we had cosy dinner in Atlas Bar where I really enjoyed the lively and bubbly energy.

Maija in Kalaset:



Brunch in Cafe Sokkelund:



We walked a lot in Norrebro, Vesterbro and Frederiksberg, Nyhavn and Latinerkvarteret and did some shopping as well. Maija bought a luxurious Aspekts handmade leather bag and I finally got a pair of Swedish Hasbeens sandals… I know we were in Denmark but Swedish Hasbeens are not easy to find in Finland! But I also got a Danish coctail dress by Bitte Kai Rand…

A walk arour Norrebro:







On Istedgade:

Illums Bolighus:



Maybe the most comfortable armchair in the world? With the Paul Smith cover the price was over 6 000 €.


Maija with her gorgeous Aspekts leather bag:

Magasin du Nord:



Frederiksberg Have:


Sunday morning mist in Vesterbrostorv:

And finally, my Hasbeens!

In all the trip was a very needed little brake. Now back in business with new energy!

Johanna

the performance period is over for now

Performed Twirling World four times with Sonja. It’s a hard piece to perform but it was great to experience that the performance had developed and also our relationship as performers had deepened. There were some really nice people in the audience and I’m happy some friends finally saw it. The last performance was very emotional and many people were howling in the audience – I guess it had a certain sad energy of a last show as both Sonja and I also felt quite emotional. Anyway, it wasn’t the very last show but it was an end of this period.




Photos Pekka Mäkinen.

Some thoughts:
I’ve noticed that it’s been a while since I’ve seen the anorexic woman whom I saw last year walking along Saaristokatu almost every day. Is she dead?

I’m really looking forward to the weekend brake with Maija in Copenhagen!
But before that, there’s a lot of work to do.

Johanna

good gig in Oulu

I’m sitting on a train from Oulu to Kuopio. Last night I performed Acts of Clothing in Oulu to a full house and left feeling quite happy and satisfied. Here’s a link to the interview in Kaleva. I love performing that show although it somehow takes a lot out of me. A lot of energy, lot of strength, a lot of layers, emotions, feelings. The performance was perhaps a bit more emotional than usually as yesterday would have been my sister’s 32nd birthday. And there were some relatives in the audience, too, which is always a bit scary. But they loved the show and afterwards we had a dinner in an Indian restaurant – the same one where I last saw my sister exactly a year ago.
It was great to see Pirjo, my old time friend, teacher and collegue. I shared my pains and pleasures of performing, of donating my body to a certain imagery and the emotions and questions it has raised. The questions of being scrutinized by anybody, being viewed by the critical eye, the perhaps ‘evil’ eye. Why do I do it? Why do I set myself in the scenes that cause me so much emotional pain? Of course I know why – as the choreographer and director – but it’s yet again a different thing to experience all that as a performer, as a living and breathing and feeling human body. Not easy.
I’m longing for my exercise routines that have been a bit lost during the last weeks when I was in Sydney and now in Oulu. I’m dreaming of Pipsa’s Kinesis sport and functional training sessions and I wouldn’t mind a Zumba class on Saturday morning either! How weird is that?

Johanna

post holiday blues and travel preparations

There wasn’t much anything special about the holidays besides the luxury of time. The time to do things that in the normal everyday do not get enough attention, do not have enough peace around to be able to happen.
So I read books. I knitted. I made a lamp (pic to be appeared later).

I knitted a floor pillow. And not only the cover, I also sewed the pillow inside the knitted one. The carpet is Tempo 207 by Hanna Korvela Design.



Besides Australia & Sydney travel guides, I read quite a few books during the holidays. The best one was Raja by Riikka Pulkkinen and now I’m reading Luokkaretkellä hyvinvointiyhteiskunnassa which is quite thought provoking and inspiring.

I’ve made some preparations for the trip and finally bought a new suitcase! Love this Samsonite Aeris spin case:


And Sari from Visio cut & dyed my hair on Saturday. I think I’m slowly getting ready for the long journey to Australia…


Johanna