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Relative Values

the work of Riitta Liisa and Anna-Riitta Haavisto

Pirkko Vekkeli

It is interesting how the artwork of one can complement that of the other, when mother and daughter both work with textiles. Riitta-Liisa and Anna-Riitta Haavisto each work in their own studio, and don't exchange opinions on a daily basis. In fact, they try not to influence each other. 'It is nice that you can show your work to somebody and discuss it, though,' they say. When, in 1996, Anna-Riitta participated in a joint exhibition in England, her work created so much interest that she was invited to hold a solo show at the Coningsby Gallery in London, where she had previously studied art. In that same year, she had collaborated with her mother to create ecclesiastical textiles for the Church of Saint Mary in St Petersburg, Russia. The idea of a joint exhibition was born: it seemed so natural to continue their collaboration. When the organisation of an exhibition is shared, there is more time for creative work.

Although they are from different generations, they share a common source of inspiration: Laila Karttunen (1895-1981), one of the most renowned textile artists in Finland, and Riitta-Liisa's aunt. Laila Karttunen's love of vibrant colours and textiles made a deep impression on her younger relatives. One might say that these characteristics have been transferred from one generation to the next. Both mother and daughter draw from the same tradition, a passionate use of colour.

Riitta-Liisa did not want to compete with her aunt, so she chose to train in fashion design at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki. She has spent most of her working life as a designer, and was a respected lecturer at the Häme Polytechnic Wetterhoff where her aunt had also taught. After retirement Riitta-Liisa became a full-time artist. Although she had exhibited throughout Europe in the 1960s, creating textiles had been something of a sideline activity. Now it plays a central role in her life.

Riitta-Liisa Haavisto: Sunrise. 2000.

Hand embroidery. Silk, cotton and linen thread on silk and cotton fabric. 32 x 36 cm.
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'As I started stitching seriously so late in life, I wanted to choose a technique that was portable,' says Riitta-Liisa. Despite trying embroidery and realising its immensely rich possibilities, she was in two minds about it. As a child, she learned embroidery under the strict supervision of her mother, who insisted upon exacting standards. Riitta-Liisa resented this strict guidance. 'My mother thought girls had to be good at needlework. Although I learned skills as a child, my interest developed later in life, and it just keeps growing.'

Today Riitta-Liisa agrees with her mother and says that children should learn to use their hands. When you learn the basics as a child, you can do whatever you want as an adult. The fairytale fantasies which Riitta-Liisa's works evoke originate from her childhood in the country. As a child she believed in fairies and the spirits of the forest. It is not uncommon in the Finnish folk art tradition to hear trees speak, and when her mother read fairy stories to her, she believed every word. Today the spirit of those fairytales shimmers and shines in the delicate stitching of her embroidery.

Riitta-Liisa Haavisto: L'Arc de Triomphe. 1997.

Hand embroidery. Cotton, silk thread, silk fabric. 14 x 14 cm.
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Anna-Riitta also learned her skills from her grandmother, and from an early age she knew that textiles would be her vocation. 'When we stayed overnight at Grandma's place, I always had some needlework at hand - honeycomb towelling, hemming, all sorts,' says Anna-Riitta. The acclaimed artist Auntie Laila taught her great-niece to weave using a handloom. Anna-Riitta quickly mastered the techniques, and now appreciates her apprenticeship, though as a little girl she would rather have played with poster paint than concentrate on meticulous work with warp and weft.

Anna-Riitta trained at the University of East London and Central Saint Martins College of Art in London. After graduating in 1982, she designed fabrics until she was drawn into the world of textile art and became increasingly interested in developing her own ideas. Her repertoire broadened and the size of her works grew to include outdoor installations.

Anna-Riitta Haavisto: Spring Migration of Birds. 1996.

Mixed techniques. Wood, silk ribbon, stones, metal. 80 x 42 x 42 cm.
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Anna-Riitta often works directly with nature. She once saw a gaggle of Canadian geese on the lake. They dived into the water to pick up grasses from the bottom of the lake, some of which later floated to the surface. 'I was touched by the thought that the birds had brought into daylight something that we hadn't known existed. I collected some of the floating reeds and made an installation of them in glass jars filled with water.' Once she dragged home aspen logs from the forest. The trees had been felled near her house and elks had eaten the bark left on the trunks. She raised the logs vertically, elks' teeth-marks creating an exciting graphic design, and tied them together with colourful threads. The work still stands, darkened by the rain.

Anna-Riitta Haavisto: Harvest. 1996.

Mixed techniques. Steel, plastic, cotton, silk. 20 x 20 cm.
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Through her art, Anna-Riitta sometimes addresses international issues. 'Good News', a work made of newspaper and shaped like a flower, conveys a message that news is always good for somebody even if it is bad for someone else.

The Haavistos' interpretation of techniques is intuitive. Their work is not premeditated. It is a challenge and a joy to both viewer and artist. 'I used to think that embroidery must be worked on rough linen cloth,' says Riitta-Liisa. 'I disliked this material and once I realised I can work in any way I wanted, my creativity was freed.' She now uses cotton, linen, damask and silk. The delicate shine of the fabrics acts as an extra dimension in her works. She stitches with cotton, linen, silk and metal threads of varying thickness, some inherited from Laila Karttunen. Her small-scale works employ different stitches worked in parallel, crosswise, on top of each other and overlapping - like drawn marks of different weights. With virtuoso skills she uses them for sharp drawing, delicate shading or to create atmospheric surfaces. The American journalist and curator Carol K. Russell wrote in Fiberarts magazine: 'Her works are similarly spontaneous yet assured. Nothing seems willed here. It is as if each form or colour reveals the next logical note in the music of her personal sphere. Present always though is the unmistakable equilibrium of a master conductor.'

Anna-Riitta Haavisto: Surprised by Joy (detail). 1996.

Mixed techniques. Sand, stones, cotton, wool.
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The spirit of Anna-Riitta's works could be crystallised in the saying carpe diem, 'seize the moment'. Her inspiration is often born in moments given by nature, which might quietly pass us by. The work too may be fleeting: her installations may be constructed spontaneously. A reviewer from a Finnish daily newspaper notes that Anna-Riitta's work 'forces the viewer to find explanations for her mysteries through meditation and thus to participate in the final construction of her artwork.'

The qualities of different materials can be seen in her art. Time attaches its signature to the constructions made of natural materials, while polished steel conveys the message of eternity. Anna-Riitta's works have been described as natural and ordered or quiet and discursive at the same time. Devoid of sentimentality, they have the innocence of a wave rolling to the shore.

You can see the work of Riitta-Liisa and Anna-Riitta Haavisto in the following exhibitions:

• Norton Priory Museum, UK, Gardening Gloves: until 20 May (and in part until 7 July).
• The Snyderman Gallery, Philadelphia, USA, Fiber Survey 2002: until 31 May.
• Anna-Riitta Haavisto will take part in the New Fibre Art joint exhibition at Morley Gallery in London: 1-20 July 2002.
• The Bel Art Gallery, Vancouver, Canada: 9 July - 6 August 2002.
• SOFA CHICAGO, USA: 25-27 October 2002.

Pirkko Vekkeli is a journalist and clothes designer from Helsinki. She works for Gloria magazine writing features and interviews. She has also worked as a fashion designer and is a member of the Association of Finnish Designers, ORNAMO.

This article is from Embroidery, Volume 53 No.3, © Pirkko Vekkeli.