Yksin is a project about different facets of being alone/lonely/lonesome/secluded as a stranger in thinly populated Finland, created during stays as artist in residence in Finland 2008 and 2009.

As a foreign artist I had an entire house all for me alone. This meant concentration, peace, time for thinking, experimenting and working. But living in Finland as a stranger from densely populated central Europe for a set amount of time above all means experiencing to be alone. Because of the vastness of the country, big distances between places, a certain shyness of the inhabitants and a language practically impossible to learn despite trying hard; this feeling can be very intense.

The title “yksin” refers to the various meanings deriving of the word for one, yksi., such as ”Yksin”/„Yksinomainen“/”yksikseen”/”yksinään”/ „yksinäisyys“/„yksinäinen “yksinäisyys”/ yksineläjä. All those words refer to the multiple facets of being alone. It can mean solitude in a positive sense, on the other hand it can lead to a sense of isolation from the main stream society. Above all it is a private experience.

The series is accompanied by a video titled “Kalevala” which intends to emphasize the importance of language for the social construction of national identity, but also for integration of the individual in a different culture.

Lönnrot’s achievement of collecting ancient stories in the Kalevala is said to have played a significant role for the development of Finnish identity, state building and Finlands official language and independence. On the other hand it’s a compilation of different versions and a connection separate myths, which illustrates the complexity and constructedness of identity.

In this video performance the artist is reading the Kalevala in Finnish language in rural settings in Finland, hoping to get better in the process, working hard, struggling with the language until exhaustion but also sometimes with equipment, weather and mosquitos.