Birgitta Linhart: Unwanted, 2025, spruce needles and thread.
An homage to my beloved spruce trees. In a world where they were misplaced and unwanted.
The Observation of Change exhibition is on display at Havremagasinet in Boden, Sweden, until 11 January 2026. The exhibition is based on a Nordic art project in collaboration with the nature restoration project Observation – An Observation of Change in the Junkerdal area, Saltdal municipality, Norway.
This art-science exhibition on forest restoration highlights the growing recognition that collaboration between the arts and sciences is vital for addressing complex environmental, social, and cultural challenges. By bringing together creative and scientific perspectives, the exhibition presents narratives that highlight different aspects of forest restoration. Artists foster empathy and a deeper understanding in support of ecological restoration and the conservation of forest ecosystems.
The artworks on display are created by artists, scientists, and school pupils as a result of diverse collaborations within the initiative. The artistic response harnesses the power of art and art education interventions to reflect on the ethics of ecological restoration and communicate biodiversity research. This approach allows participants to document nature, conceptualise environmental changes, and broaden awareness of conservation in the Arctic. The project, through its several artistic productions, serves as an example of art’s inspiring role in addressing environmental issues.
Artists of the exhibition are: Anja Kath. Lande, Birgitta Linhart, Esa Pekka Isomursu, Johannes Pekonen, Johan Rova, Karin Stoll, Laila Ingvaldsen, Maria Huhmarniemi, Mette Gårdvik, Tommi Yläjoki, Wenche Sørmo
Institutional partners of the project include the Adde Zetterquist Art Gallery, Nordland National Park Centre, Midtre Nordland nasjonalparkstyre, the Norwegian Institute of Nature Research (NINA), the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, the University of Lapland, Nord University, and the Arctic Sustainable Arts and Design network. The exhibition is supported by the Nordic Culture Fund.
Johan Rova: Awakening of Sleeping Beauty, 2025, Machine embroidery.
After 100 years’ sleep in a dark spruce plantation, the birch forest awakens, brushes its teeth, fills up fuel in the chain saw and sets out to cut down the remaining spruce trees. But will it be possible to restore the landscape to what it once looked like? Will the dreamt-of plants and insects return?
Tommi Yläjoki and Maria Huhmarniemi: With Indigenous Birch, 2025, video 9:25 minutes (still image from a video)
A dance with an indigenous birch tree, accompanied by a voice-over research brief by Rannveig M. Jacobsen and Siri Lie Olsen on forest restoration in the Junkerdalsura nature reserve.
Esa Pekka Isomursu: Spruce trees “screaming” in ultraviolet, 2024. Photograph with a modified camera and UV bandpass filter.
Ultraviolet imaging reveals stress in spruce trees deliberately harmed to restore native birch forests. The image highlights ecological renewal while inviting reflection on tree sentience within evolving forest ecosystems.
Maria Huhmarniemi: Forest of Paper Blossoms, 2025, installation (recycled paper, wood poles, wood pellets),
The installation consists of elements made from handmade recycled paper. It questions the prevailing attitude of viewing forests primarily as assets or sources of economic gain.
More information: Maria Huhmarniemi, maria.huhmarniemi@ulapland.fi
The exhibition project is supported by the Nordic Culture Fund.