Helsinki Round 2

Sorry Textile Design, but the trip to Helsinki with the Glass and Ceramics course tickled my fancy a little bit more!  The bus left Kuopio early on Thursday morning (after very kindly being picked up at 5.40am by Eveliina and her boyfriend) and made a few stops on the way before arriving in the late afternoon. 

The first was stop was Nuutajärvi Glass Village, which houses a glass school and place for glass artists to use glass facilities, such as the kilns.  Some of the artists also had studio spaces and places to display their work.

Timoria

Lasi Sirkus

In another building, was a factory area, which produced glassware for the likes of Marimeko and Ittala.  It was interesting to see glass being produced on a commercial scale, both by hand and machinery.  You don't think about how the simpilest household items are made!

After hopping back onto the bus again, we went off to our second stop, The Finnish Glass Museum.  This was a museum that showed the history of glass in Finland and had an impressive display of different glass pieces.

Then we got back on the bus, which drove across the street (not kidding) to a small glass shop and glass studio.  It was only a small building and we ddin't get to see much other than the store and the studio space

A while later we checked in at our hotel, the rather swish Radisson Blu (check the fancy seat in the foyer!).  It was the fanciest room I've ever stayed in (mini bar) with the comfiest beds ever! Yes, we did jump on them!  We even got to have a free sauna and breakfast! And all for only 35€ each!

Day two took us to a ceramics factory at the Arabia Centre, a ceramics company who make the infamous Finnish Muumi ceramicwares.  Unfortunately, the factory was a no-photo zone.  We got to see how the clay was made up, then turned into bowls, mugs and plates, before being fired and glazed.  It was suprising how much of the process was still done by hand and it was nice to see that machines did not to ALL the work!  After buying the most expensive mug my coffee will ever go into (but worth it), we headed back to Kuopio.