New World Finn Art Gallery
Yeshe Linda Helander
Somewhere a red fox
"Color plays a part. Place plays a part. Putting together.
Taking apart. Constructions of still places. All are still places
in my being. My drawings/constructions/installations all come
ftom my Finnish senses. My Finnish grandmothers worked with rags
and threads. My Finnish grandfathers worked with stones and timbers.
Working inside. Working outside. Internal. External. A place
inside. Placement. Placing outside. Playing with placement. Placing
something somewhere."
Somewhere a Red Fox, 2001,
12"x12", oil on wood
Steep Hill, 2001,12"x12",
wood and paint
Sustenance, 2001, 12"x12",
oil on wood
Poetry Harbor, 2001, 12"x12",
wood and paint
Two Sisters and the Sky, most recently exhibited at Finlandia
University in Hancock, Michigan, from June 11th to July 25th, 2002,
is a visual art installation dedicated to relationships that have been
transformed through the loss of a loved one. Participation in the project
was open to the public throughout the show's run. A ceremonial burning
(sukhavati) which recognizes impermanence concluded the project. Part
of installation shown below.
In a review in the Ripsaw News, Tim Anderson wrote the following about
Yeshe's "Two Sisters and the Sky":
Helander's exhibit was born out
of the loss of her sister to cancer in 1997. After this event,
Helander traveled to Gampo Abbey, in Nova Scotia, to scatter
Shirley's ashes. Gampo Abbey is a Buddhist monastery that houses
teacher Pema Chodron, whose writings had provided inspiration
and comfort to the sisters in Shirley's dying process and, according
to Helander, gave a "spaciousness" to the event. She
also admits that her sister's passing may have been a pointer
towards the abbey, to "learn about living more essentially,
more sanely."
The interactive portion is possibly
the most interesting part of the show, as it invites the viewer
to reflect on loved ones lost and to share experiences and grief
within the confines of Helander's framework. There are several
levels of interaction possible within the show. First, viewers-both
artist and non-are invited to construct a tribute within certain
design confines. These tributes are placed within trays, and
the small folios are open for examination to all. They are filled
with colors, pictures and words; collages, quotes and drawings,
all examinations and explorations of the loss of certain loved
ones. Some of these remembrances are nearly lighthearted, some
are quite beautiful in their artistry, others are crushingly
heartbreaking in their sorrow-nearly all the phases of loss.
Wandering through these skeletal racks which contain compartments
of grief is an exploration process of the feelings that we all
pass through at one time or another.
EDUCATION
M.F.A., Sculpture, Univeristy of Washington, Seattle, Washington,
1991.
M.A., University of Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, 1989.
B.F.A., University of Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, 1987.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Art Workshop Instructor, Suomi Int'l. School of Art & Design,
Hancock, MI, July 1999.
Faculty for Studio Art Class in Ciudad Colon, Costa Rica. Summer
school pre-session, May /June 1999.
Assistant Professor, Department of Art, University of Minnesota,
Duluth, MN. Drawing, 2D design, 3D design,
Introduction to Art, Life Drawing, Sculpture, Crossing Over:
2D to 3D (and back again). Full-time,
1995 to 1999. (Sabbatical replacement for sculpture -1998/99.)
Instructor, Weekly Open Studio -Washington Studios Cooperative,
Duluth, MN, Aug.1997 to May 1998.
Faculty for Studio Art Class in 'Pergola, Italy. Summer school
pre-session, May / June 1997 and 1998.
Sculpture Instructor, University of Wisconsin, Superior, WI.
All levels of Drawing, Life Drawing, Introduction to Art, all
levels of Sculpture. Full-time, 1993- 1995.
Art Workshop Instructor, Int'l. Falls, MN, Virginia, MN, Hancock,
MI, Madeline Island, WI. (1990- 1993)
Art Instructor, Rainy River Community College, Int'1. Falls,
MN, Spring /Summer 1993.
Carpentry Instructor, Vocational Gender Equity Program, Newport,
OR, 1992.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Finlandia University, Hancock, MI, Two Sisters and the Sky,
2002.
Duluth Art Institute, Duluth, MN, Two Sisters and the Sky,
2000.
Finlandia University, Hancock, MI, 5th Finnish-American Series,
makeat aineet, sweet things,1995.
Joy Kops Gallery, Duluth, MN, figure/ground; installation
of new work, 1995.
Steensland Art Museum, St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN, Minun
Nimi On...Sculpture and Drawings,1993.
de Colores Gallery, Virginia, MN, Exhibiton of Mixed Media
Works, 1993.
The Depot, Duluth, MN, Poems on Paper , 1992-1993. (Exhibitions
in Hibbing,MN and Virginia,MN also.)
Duluth Art Institute, Duluth, MN, Sculptures and Drawings,
1991.
Tweed Museum of Art, Duluth, MN, M;A. Exhibit, 1989, B.F.A.
Exhibit, 1987.
More of Yeshe's work can be seen online at: cocostogeaux. com/
artists/8th-Linda-Helander.htm
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