GOLDEN PLACES (2022)
Collaborative polyptych artwork
Golden Places focuses on intergenerational relationships, memories, and making art collaboratively. Nummela has worked with her grandparents to make four unique works, each a place-centric representation of a grandparents’ fondest childhood memory.
Vesa. Digital painting printed onto a puzzle. 68 x 44 cm. Made in collaboration with Vesa Nummela.
Terttu. Acrylic and oil paint on canvas. 60 x 70 cm. Made in collaboration with Terttu Kivikankare.
Rauno. Micron pen on paper. 76 x 56 cm. Made in collaboration with Rauno Marjamäki.
Leena. Mouliné yarn embroidered onto painted Aida-fabric. 60 x 40 cm. Made in collaboration with Leena Luukka.
Golden Places focuses on intergenerational relationships, memories by making art collaboratively. Nummela has worked with her grandparents to make four unique works, each a place-centric representation of a grandparent’s fondest childhood memory. The premise of the artwork was to create a dedicated setting for the artist to spend time and converse with her grandparents. A setting in which they could discuss the grandparents' lives and form new connections and shared memories.
The project was collaborative throughout – Nummela’s grandparents took part in the ideation phase and the active making of the art pieces. Each piece was personalised to reflect the grandparent’s craft or creative self-expression in addition to their relationship to the artist. The parts of the artwork are named after the grandparents: Vesa, Terttu, Rauno, and Leena.
The mediums and techniques are embroidery on hand-painted Aida-fabric, a memoir written out by hand onto paper, a 1980s painting reimagined digitally and printed onto a puzzle, and an acrylic and oil painting on canvas. Small golden details repeat throughout the works, symbolically tying the pieces together.
Though on the surface Golden Places is representational of happy and innocent childhood memories, the project is about forming deeper connections between grandchild and grandparent. Beginning the process with topics that were easy to talk about was a gateway into discussions and subject matters that would be difficult to bring up under other circumstances.
Nummela communicates the value of Golden Places and collaborative projects similar to it further within her Bachelor’s Thesis.
Read the thesis here.
