Despite bitter cold temperatures in the Upper Peninsula over the weekend, Hancock and the Copper Country made the most out of the Finnish-American winter festival, Heikinpäivä.
Many programs moved indoors, and the community enjoyed the traditional Tori Market. Some even stopped by the Copper Country Community Arts Center for the opening reception of the Art of the Kalevala exhibit.
While out on the Quincy Green, international teams worked hard on snow sculptures. The community ducked into the Copper Country Community Arts Center to view examples of local art inspired by the national folk tale of Finland, the Kalevala.
“Yeah, I feel like this is pretty on brand for this area of the country and you can’t help but picture old Heiki Lunta smiling at the turn of events with the weather,” said Terri Frew of Touni’s Liquors.
Heikinpäivä explores the Copper Country’s Finnish heritage and was born out of an appreciation for the culture’s influence on the Keweenaw Peninsula over the years, especially Finland’s appreciation for winter weather.
“I mean there’s still Finnish words sprinkled in my vocabulary and I didn’t even realize it as a kid. Finnish dishes, Finnish traditions still that carried over to the UP and it’s a good way for me to kind of break out of the box a little bit and dig even deeper into my Finnish heritage and ancient Finnish heritage which is absolutely fascinating,” said James Harju of Otso’s Footsteps.
Artist Terri Frew says there are many inspiring scenes in the Kalevala for artists to draw from. Her art in the exhibit depicts a scene in the underworld where Kalevala’s hero, Väinämöinen, is offered a particularly nasty tasting drink.
“Her name’s Touni, or Touni’s Liquors. And upon further inspection, he realizes that there’s all manner of frogs and poisonous serpents and worms and you name it in it, and rejects drinking the beer of the damned, lest he remain in the underworld forever,” Frew said.
“It’s just a gold mine of hidden talent, a copper mine of hidden talent, right? So many people up here just going about their day and then they pop out some of these artworks like this. Amazing,” Harju said.
The Art of the Kalevala exhibit at the Copper Country Community Arts Center will remain on display until Feb. 28. The Copper Country Community Arts Center is located at 126 Quincy Street in Hancock, Michigan. The CCCAC’s open hours are 11 am to 6 pm Sunday to Friday, and 10 am to 2 pm on Saturdays.
Those interested in learning more about the Kalevala and the art exhibit at the CCCAC can find more details online.
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