ART CENTER AHJO, SYSI-HALL; KIRSIKODIN TAITEILIJAT - TODEKSI ELETTY UNELMA

KIRSIKODIN TAITEILIJAT - TODEKSI ELETTY UNELMA

The association established the ARTS CENTER in Lieksa.

I thought culture was a way of life, not an hourly job. I bought the old school in Saarivaara, a place I dreamed of in my heart, to realize my lifestyle. I told my student Kirsi Timonen about my dream and she made the painting above out of it.

A crazy construction project, working with my family, friends and the students' parents. We hired professionals to design and build with the support of RAY.

On Midsummer's Eve 1993, the Kirsikoti was blessed and inaugurated.

In my class, we did performances; Pellekoulu, Iniaanien koitinpaluu, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Väriympyrä. We painted the fabrics and sewed the costumes with the students. We even took Snow all the way to Almeria. There were also many performances in the Kirsikoti for which we made the costumes.

Choosing the exhibition ensemble was difficult out of hundreds of works.