MAKE Southwest & ONOMA
UK / Finland Craft Collaboration
In early 2023, MAKE Southwest in Devon, UK, and Onoma, in Southern Finland started to talk about making a connection between these two very similar organisations.
Laura Wasley and Flora Pearson of MAKE Southwest had learned about the unique cooperative of creative people that is ONOMA, located in similar historical surroundings to their own community in Bovey Tracey, Devon.
Onoma, the Cooperative of Artists, Designers and Artisans of Fiskars has been producing exhibitions locally and internationally for nearly 30 years. Its 143 members’ work in a wide range of different fields and with various materials. The cooperative has been running a member only art, craft and design store, ONOMA Shop, for 25 years and an international Artist in Residence program for more than 15 years in the historical ironmongery village of Fiskars, Finland. Fiskars village was founded in 1649, and it is also a home to the largest listed company in Finland, Fiskars Group (or Corporation, you know, the orange scissors?). Onoma was founded at a time when the industry was moving elsewhere from the village and it was in dire need of a spark of life.
In early 2023 MAKE Southwest had been looking for international creative partners to do an exhibition exchange with and after the first online meeting between the parties it was clear that there is undeniable synergy and many exciting similarities between these two creative organisations. The idea to start producing joined exhibitions in alternating years was born.
Graphics by Lulu Halme
CHAPTER I / LUKU I
Kupru Gallery, Fiskars, Finland
Chapter I / Luku I, was an exhibition produced by the two collaborating organisations, and took place in Kupru gallery, Fiskars, from 3 - 30 September 2023. The first edition – first of many to come we hope – was called CHAPTER 1 symbolising the beginning of our collaboration, and showed works from eight artists and makers from both organisations:
Sally Baldwin, textile artist, UK
Lulu Halme, visual artist, graphic designer, FINLAND
Barton Hargreaves, artist and printmaker, UK
Tiina Karimaa, sculptor, FINLAND
Peter Lanyon, green wood furniture maker, UK
Syann Van Nitfrik, jeweller, UK
Riitta Talonpoika, ceramic artist, FINLAND
Imogen Taylor-Noble, ceramic artist, UK
Inside the gallery
At the preview evening
About ONOMA
Founded in the historical ironworks village in Raseborg in 1996, Onoma the Cooperative of Artists, Designers and Artisans in Fiskars is one of the oldest operating cooperative of artists in Finland. Onoma’s 143 members represent dozens of different fields of design, arts and crafts, and each of them either lives or works in Fiskars village.
CHAPTER II / LUKU II
Riverside Gallery, MAKE Southwest, UK
In late 2024 we are hoping to reciprocate with a show of collaborative work at MAKE Southwest by artists from both sides.
We are inviting artists from ONOMA to make contact with an artist from MAKE Southwest, and to talk and challenge each other, starting a dialogue, and aiming for a collaborative piece, or a grouping or pairing of work which can sit together in one space.
