In the beginning… there was The Country House Course

Leaving for England in 1985

After my graduation from The Lönnbeckska high school in Helsinki in 1985, I spent a year studying at a diploma course in Sussex studying Interior Decoration. The course also included art history and an A-level in art. I was very worn out by the time I arrived in England, it had been a tough year with graduation exams, a full time job straight after that at The Gallen Kallela Museum (in the cafe and later in the museum itself), and my mum had been ill so I had had to take care of her and her move to a new house. Unsurprisingly, I came down with mononucleosis. I should have rested but there was no time for rest. 

It was a bitterly cold winter and the heating was terribly insufficient everywhere, at the school and in the homes where I stayed. The pace was hard: we had to complete an essay per week on art history and the history of British architecture, and obviously also get creative with design projects. To be honest I really found it incredibly demanding. This was just before the boom so there was no precedent to be rely on. You had to keep writing letters to companies and ask for samples and also work with the crafty side of things. For instance, the designs had to be drawn on expensive paper you had to stretch yourself with water on a board, and certain types of brown ink pens were to be used. We also needed books. It was all very costly and I did not have the money many of the other students had (they all appeared pretty well to do and their parents probably funded it all for them). Most of the students were younger than me, I was also quite shy and felt quite lonely. They all thought I was strange when I always showed up in the same two green sweaters that I alternated. I eventually bought a children’s coat because it was cheap. To be honest, I also had a weakness for old books so some money went into such frivolities. I was young and not very good with money as that was not something I was taught at home, and I have a tendency to be overly optimistic.

Thankfully I had a friend from home who lent me some money for a trip down South during Easter because he was keen to go and wanted my company, but it was a miserably rainy spring so I can’t say any good memories were made other than that it was nice to travel a bit. My shoes were so poor I got a cold and my friend bought me a new pair.

The child sized coat and the new shoes

I completed the course but not as well as I would have hoped. The principle Mrs Moreen Biron nevertheless kept in touch for years, I think she was somewhat fond of me because I spoke fairly good English at the tender age of 19 and she had hopes for me. 

Sadly, I wasn’t much of a photographer back then, maybe I was just too overwhelmed. I remember feeling very depressed during spring term and really hating it all. As a foreigner, I was at an obvious disadvantage, but what I also didn’t realise then was that I suffered from a genuinely debilitating disease (hEDS). No wonder I was really a mess. I still ended up relocating to the UK in the end. Who knows why! I do love the language. I was also finally diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome in 2018. I have another blog about the challenges I’ve faced since my husband died.

Holmstall, Sussex
The school was in the cottage to the right.

Mrs Biron and I

My work to the left

Graduation
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The bathroom perplexed me. 
It was carpeted and there was no shower unit.
There was no hot water until the evening. I was freezing until then.

I didn’t stay very long in this house, it got crowded, apparently, 
and I was crowded out. I arrived first but got the coldest and least cosy room
(blue Laura Ashley style).

My room for a while after the Christmas holidays, which I had to spend in Finland.
At least here I was allowed an open fire to keep warm.
I tried self catering but had to move after a while because my hostess was 
grieving her husband’s death.

The last family I stayed with

My last room - I moved three times.
In this house, the heating was on and the food was quite good.

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Some places I visited

Looking for inspiration at John Lewis.

Monk House.
I’d written an award winning essay on Orlando
in my last year at high school.

Knole

PROJECTS

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The school conversion was my A-level project.
the exam took place at Mayfield College.
I got an A for this project.

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A Christmas greeting from Mrs Biron.
Sadly she recently died but she did have a long and fulfilling life.

When I returned to Helsinki, I had major reconstructive spinal surgery. I then found a job as an intern at a design studio with a great boss and great colleagues but never took the profession any further. Drawing designs by hand was hard when. you suffered from chronic fatigue like me. I sought in at the School of Design and didn’t do too badly, but the mathematical side of the course would have been too much for me to deal with - no, I didn’t get in. In Finland, the idea of merely being a decorator was rather foreign at the time. I enrolled at the university after this (first philosophy, then history of art) and it suited me quite well until I grew bored and went to study art in France.

The Petrified Trees - photos from Kansas 2008

THE PETRIFIED TREES - Photo Gallery Zebra, Karjaa, Finland 2009

“As the daughter of two photographers, photography has always played an important role in my life, even though other forms of visual expression have taken the forefront. Thanks to the ease with which I can now process photos, the digital age has inspired a renewed interest in photography. I spent last winter in Kansas, USA, where the harsh weather condition literally took the local habitants by storm. While others huddled together for warmth in their abodes, myself and my adventurous American friend made over 20 trips to a large lake, Clinton Lake. It was surrounded by a difficult terrain that was clearly left to its own devices and seldom visited. Therefore these trips weren't simple strolls in the countryside, but quite hazardous at times. The fact that I was offered the use of a camera of high quality allowed me to capture the endless changes in the unexpected weather conditions and the splendid sunsets on a spot in nature that was anything but pretty in the conventional sense. There are no natural lakes in Kansas, so land has been evacuated to make room for boating and sports in the summer time.

In the large Clinton Lake the trees had been left so that during times of low tide in the winter the dead skeletons of these trees would rise above the water, or, as was  often the case during this exceptional winter, the ice. The muddy shores were lined with fossils, unbelievable amounts of knotty trees that had fallen over, and fascinating roots that often appeared quite humorous. At close range, as well as from further afield, this landscape with the ghost trees and the strange balance between natural and artificial was surreal. I hope this unusual environment will offer an interesting visual experience!

Also shown in Douglas County Library 2008

All photos are subject to copyright and may not be reproduced or otherwise shared or used without the explicit permission of the photographer.

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