The urge to leave is part of human nature. A romantic desire to go
wandering takes one’s thoughts to a time when hunting and gathering
where an essential condition of life. Nowadays the yearning for
adventure is an element of spare time, relaxation and togetherness. An
old proverb of the nomad tribes, “without movement there is no wisdom”,
describes people’s capacity to gather information along the road they
travel. A modern Finn camps in the summer house or around the
kitchen table. The people for whom the call of the wild north means
hunting expeditions and camping in the forest are very few. Still, the
storytelling around a campfire is an important part of forming a group
and being together. At best it is a ritual that leads to friendship and
even lifelong companionship.
for a full view click the pictures
The modern campfire is not a pile of
logs and open fire. More often it is a potful of good tea or a glass of
fragrant mulled wine. The important thing is enjoying these warm moments
together. The Nomad tea lights by Kari Huhtamo are the perfect way to
keep the pot warm through the time you spend together. The design is
both elegant and practical. The combination of the candle heat and the
beautiful light is inviting. Looking at the Nomad heater you’ll find
yourself thinking about a moment of rest and peace, a campfire, the
starlit sky and the call of the wild. Visually the Nomad is based on
footprints. The cover of the heater is cut in the shape of a paw. There
are four designs: wolverine, lynx, bear and fox. A footprint in the snow
gives a thrill, but it also brings fear and awe. These animals are
native creatures of the forest. They walk their own paths, and a wise
human being steps aside. Few people, however, would pass by a beast’s
footprints on a snowy path without taking a photograph. There is a touch
or archaic beauty in the footprints, they have remained the same as long
as people have inhabited the Finnish peninsula. The base element of the
Nomad is adorned by the footprints of our prey animals. Moose, hare and
reindeer sprinkle a continuous string of footprints in the snow. The
cover of Nomad can be manufactured of three different materials.
Timeless and elegant steel gives room to imagination, it reflects the
surrounding atmosphere. Icy glass is like an image of the Finnish nature
in wintertime. Stone makes us think of our bedrock. The different animal
footprints and the various surface materials enable several alternatives
to variation. Nomad is not just an object. It revives the collective
memories of an ancient way of life lived in intimate connection with
nature. It creates an atmosphere for a nostalgic moment around its warm
glow. As long as people gather around a fire, tell stories and learn to
live together, there is hope of peace in our common world.
Kari Huhtamo
Sculptor Kari Huhtamo was born in 1943 in Rovaniemi, in the North of
Finland. He studied at the Institute of Industrial Arts in 1961-63
and at the Finnish Art Academy School in 1963-64. He had his first
solo exhibition in 1966 in Rovaniemi. Over the years, he has had several
solo exhibitions and participated in numerous group exhibitions in
various parts of Europe and in Asia. In 2009, he had an extensive
show in the State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia. All significant
public collections in Finland include works by Kari Huhtamo.
Kari Huhtamo has gained special acclaim as a pioneer in
computer-aided sculpture and in realizing large sculpture projects.
In addition to tens of abstract steel sculptures, reliefs and
mobiles, his extensive and original production also includes graphic
art, tapestries, silver jewelry and utility items like the ones in
the Nomad series.
