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There are old elms on the shore near the Pispala log-floating tunnel, and one of them found its way into my linocut. The tree appears black in the linoleum block because I colored it with a felt-tip pen. Sometimes, coloring with a pen helps—for instance, when carving thin branches—as it makes the uncarved areas stand out more clearly from the carved ones.
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Stairs have now appeared in the linocut of the Pispala log-floating tunnel. They lead from near the shore to the Ylä-Voima building at the highest point of the Pispala ridge. A few houses have already been carved onto the lakeshore, but the smaller houses on the ridge are missing. It looks as though there is a stairway to heaven.
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During the summer at the cottage, I started working on a new linocut featuring Pispala. The subject is a familiar sight from my walks: the old Pispala log-floating tunnel. I had often wondered about that strange opening on the Pispala hillside. I read a bit about its history online: the tunnel was built between 1966 and 1968 to float bundles of logs from Lake Näsijärvi to Lake Pyhäjärvi. However, it was never used and remained idle for 40 years. In 2013, the tunnel was finally opened, serving as a shortcut for pedestrians beneath the ridge and a transport route for moving boats between the lakes. It was a momentous occasion when one could finally walk through the tunnel. Well, now the tunnel is closed again. This linocut depicts the log-floating tunnel—with an opening I plan to color yellow—along with a stretch of the Pyhäjärvi shoreline, the highest house on the ridge, and the metal transport platform designed for the tunnel, which still stands on the shore.
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The sun is out again, and my Cobeana Scandens has enthusiastically started opening its flowers—pale yellow at first, gradually turning violet. There is still time to bloom!
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Frederick Hunter (1858–1943) created this charming mezzotint based on a painting by Henrietta Ronner. In the 19th century, Ronner frequently painted heartwarming scenes—usually featuring a family of cats—in which a mother cat watches over her kittens at play amidst textiles, furniture, and often musical instruments. In this print, three kittens are playing hide-and-seek; a white kitten is perhaps hiding inside a fur boa or a large hat, while the others try to catch it. Beautiful, soft textiles and a Japanese fan appear in this image as well, though the mother cat is nowhere to be seen.
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The calendar for 2026 of my linocuts and pastels has been printed in the traditional style again. The pictures are my linocuts and pastels. Timo has chosen Finnish proverbs to accompany the pictures. A-Print/ Printtaamo has made a good print.
The images feature plenty of Pispala, birds, fish, water, and sky. The month of January shows the rooftops of London. The calendar measures 42 x 21 cm.
You can order the calendar, but only to Finland via my Etsy shop (linokissa) for 24 euros. Due to its large size, it is shipped as an S-sized parcel (not as a letter).
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Will these Cobeana Scandens buds have time to open before the snow? One bud is hidden under the table on the balcony. This year the bell vines just sprouted wildly, even along the roof, and didn't bloom. Remember: the vines need to be cut so that they bloom and at some point you need to stop fertilizing. And one of the spruce trees needs to be cut down to prevent it from shading.
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How wonderful it is to get a picture of your sold painting in its new home. It's quite rare to get a picture like this, so it's always an event! "I Drowned, I Slept, I W Up - I Found Heaven Here", a rather large linocut/pastel traveled from the Iittala summer exhibition to Helsinki and a wooden house. With permission, the new happy owners are also revealed: Matti Remes and Susanna Tan. The painting has a great location, next to the rocking chair. I can just imagine a dark autumn evening when the round lamp has light in the same way as the lantern fish. When sitting in the rocking chair, you can almost feel yourself rocking under water. Exoticism can also be found on the floor, Matti's aunt's inheritance is a camel-shaped football from Tehran, a milking stool from Ouagadougou and a donkey rug from Afghanistan. The exotic fish on the Tahmela beach fit in very well with the same group.
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The picture is called "Cat Stirring the Christmas Pudding". The cat has not really put its paw in the bowl, but rather has a spoon in its hand while the girl is still holding onto the paw for safety. The kitten is indeed trying to get into the pudding bowl itself. Judging by the clothes, the maid is following the activity and just lifting her skirt. The lovely and warm Christmas card picture was made by the Englishwoman Rosa C. Petherick (1870-1931).
