Kotipiha pattern

Today anarticle about my Kotipiha (meaning “home yard”) pattern appeared in Finnish newspaper Keski-Häme. Through Patternsfrom Agency, it has made its way to Japanese market as blackout curtains. The article in Finnish can be found in the printed paper and, for subscribers, also as an online article.

I am originally from Lammi, and since my mother still lives there, Lammi is an important place for me also in terms of the creative process. The Kotipiha pattern is based on plant collages I have been making for over ten years. I make them four times a year, one for each season. At first, I started the project on Instagram (#harjunpelto), and nowadays the arrangements can also be found here in the Collection of treasures section.

The tradition of the arrangements began as a visual play, but the cycle of the seasons brought an interesting challenge to them. Although the main features of the garden remain the same, each arrangement is in some way different.

The Kotipiha pattern is drawn based on the autumn 2017 arrangement. Whereas in the collage the plants were placed tightly side by side, in the pattern they are arranged more openly, and it works especially well in curtains. The light background brings freshness to the whole, while the otherwise muted tones carry the same earthy atmosphere as the original arrangement.

It is always equally delightful to see a pattern as a finished product. In patterns like Kotipiha, the temporary plant arrangements are preserved to live on. The pattern is based on a yard that was once my home, and it is special to see it now travel on its own into new homes.

Photo of the curtains by Shanghai Yulin Trade