Texts
In the Kiasma Theater / 2003
Dear Audience: Kära Vänner från alla nordiska länder, Ladies and Gentlemen, visitors from the Nordic and other countries and all over from Finland – architects, artist colleagues and especially the people from all levels of construction work – and – of course, all lecturers and speakers for this conference. All You Very Important Persons. Everybody.
At last after quite long preparation time I have this honour and joy as the President of Nordic Art Association to say to all of You: Welcome! – you are so warmly welcome to Helsinki, to Kiasma and to this conference.
The Finnish Parliament Member and former President of Nordic Council, Ms Outi Ojala has unfortunately been unable to attend to this conference. So, the real opening words will be said by two people: first, the Member of the Nordic Council’s Education and Culture Committee and Member of the Finnish Parliament , Mr Mikko Alatalo (who is also a performing artist) and then, as in the programme, President CEO, Mr Mauri Niemi from SKANSKA Incorporated.
But I have a few words to say before them. It has been very interesting moments during the building days of this conference. This theme, art connecting with architecture has raised up very strong and powerful emotions and passions in people connection with it – and – still does. That’s good. We can’t reach anything new without enthuasiastic attitude.
But how art is connecting with the sustainable develoment?
Usually, in our society, when people are planning remarkable projects, in building industry, too, they naturally are also trying to remember everything, that should be included – but still they forget the arts. When I have read about the visions for the third millenium, I have not seen in those writings or heard in those speeches anything about art – or, if anything is mentioned, it was so little, and certainly not in main clause, that I don’t remember it. That’s why our title is what it is. We want to say that there is no sustainable development without including art – that we can’t forget art when we are planning our housing tracts and public buildings, our life and living environments for the glorious new century.
The subject of every lecture here should illuminate this point from many different viewpoints.
In Finland, we have highly professional people with highly professinal skills – constructors, architects, officials and artists – they can do their jobs well (if I can say in this way), but the difficulty is coordinating their skills together – that is, co-operating well! This is surely the most important issue and problem, we can notice it everywhere in different circumstances; so it’s not no sense to try avoid the problem here, either. Still, if there is a problem, there is also a solution for it! And if there are many problems, there are many solutions, too. How the difficulties has solved in the other countries, what we can learn from our neighbour lands?
I hope You will enjoy of these September days in Helsinki, and I hope that we, perhaps, can catch together some new ideas and reach, some, new understanding to go forward with this issue.
But now it is time to introduce Nordic Council’s and the Finnish Parliament representative, Mr. Mikko Alatalo; You are most welcome!
Opening Speech 9. September 2003 as the President of the Nordic Art Associationin the Conference Art in Architecture & Sustainable Development
English text checked by Mary Jane Gregory 2003