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NYC EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS

 

Springtime in New York — the never ending cold has finally subsided, flowers are in bloom, and designers are too. From May 11th to the 23rd, NYCxDESIGN hits the city, attracting hundreds of thousands who wish to indulge in design-centric exhibitions, installations, trade shows, panels, product launches, and open studios.

 

There’s more to see than you could ever get to — and this is exactly why we at Darktic wanted to exhibit our project at Wanted Design Brooklyn 2018. As University of Lapland student's, participators and visitors of the Wanted Design were naturally very interested in why we had come all the way to New York City from northern Finland. The reason was simple, to raise awareness of Arctic Design, Arctic Issues and the talent and innovation of our university's students. Above are some pictures of our exhibition from the opening night at Wanted Design Brooklyn. Our interactive stand combined design with technology, drawing in people from all over to experience the Arctic mindset.

 

 

Viivi Kallio

Project Manager & PR 

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WANTED DESIGN NYC

"This year was certainly the strongest edition of WantedDesign, both in Manhattan and Brooklyn", according to the Wanted Design founders Claire Pijoulat and Odile Hainaut. It was certainly a week to remember! We, the Darktic team, feel extremely proud and happy that we got to exhibit at Brooklyn's Wanted Design fair 2018 in May. 

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All participating manufacturers, independent studios, international group installations, and schools projects were original and of the highest quality. Like a great piece of music, everyone had a voice and played its part beautifully. Along with our contributors, we particularly enjoyed the process of building our 2018 Darktic exhibition and showcasing our project to everyone. Discovering the New York City design industry and its people was a thrill to all of us. Being able to showcase our work in the one of the worlds most prominent design hubs was something we'll never forget. This fantastic feeling reflected on our exhibition opening night until the end of the design week and visitors received it very positively. 


Observing Wanted Design's Brooklyn and Manhattan fairs, it seemed that designers have branched out, weaving more freedom into their inspiration and the way they create their installations-objects-furniture-lighting. Materials used had been explored in different ways and the attention put into sustainability was seen more than ever.


Designers are experimenting new composite materials in order to reduce waste. We, the Darktic team, were very serious about keeping our exhibition as waste-free as possible, with ecological materials, textiles and even designing elements with multiple use options. Make sure to check out our next blog post for more on this subject! 
 

 

Viivi Kallio

Project Manager & PR 

© VELI KOURI

BACK TO THE ROOTS

I’ve lived all my life in the north alongside the nature. Maybe that’s why I have taken for granted the fact that I can go to the woods to enjoy the quiet and calm environment, as it’s just minutes of walking from my home. Just a few years back, after glamorizing the big city lifestyle in my teen years, I started to really appreciate the speciality of the arctic again. I noticed how much better I feel when I’m connected with the earth and myself.

 

Humans are one of the most adjustable species on the globe. We can modify our environment and on the other hand we are capable of adapting in new environments. Still, the situation we have ended up in, is where the ecosystem is unbalanced because of our actions. Throwaway culture doesn’t serve anyone.

 

Instead, we should put our focus on building something that lasts. Personally, I think we should treat every object as if they had a soul. Then we would take better care of them. I suppose one aspect of good design is where the person who purchases an artifact ties a bond with it and feels attached to it at some way. It should be remembered that people are not separate from the nature.

The fact is, that we need this globe more than it needs us.  Still, I see this situation we are in, as a possibility to change, learn and evolve as a species. We have all the possibilities and tools to head towards the sustainable lifestyle.

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The arctic nature reflects honestly, just like the way life does. There are many things to learn from it, if you observe with peace. Contrast between life and death is present in nature and it emphasizes the authenticity of existence.

The changing seasons and the varying amount of light we have here in the arctic, has made it a rough environment to survive in, but life always finds a way.  Life is full of cycles and every cycle needs to end at some point. It is very necessary to learn to let go of old things and give space for the new. My plan is to simplify my life: reduce the stuff and be receptive to experiences.

 

Vilma Ohinmaa

Content designer

 

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ARE YOU READY FOR THE COLD?

 

When October starts and the rest of the winter seasons slowly make their way, it´s the time of year when you'll take your cozy sweater out from the closet. There is an endless cycle that begins, as you get used to dressing up for the outdoors and feeling like the Michelin man and as you finally get inside again, you’ll have to take the outer layers off, which makes for a lot of dressing in a one day.

 

Even when it's cold, people continue living their lives as normal as anywhere else around the world. Hard weather conditions don't keep us locked up inside. The right type of clothing provides us the possibility to still enjoy activities outdoors.

 

Luckily, winter clothing can always be personalized, since the freezing conditions don't stop designers from creating exciting and innovative creations. It's normal to want to cover yourself up in massive coats, sweaters and blankets, but this is not always the best option. Clothing must be functional and easy to move about in, for winter sports and other activities. Layers should be cooperated into the winter clothing, as they will give you enough space for comfortable movement to take place. Layers also help with keeping warm, adding and subtracting them throughout the day, depending on your activities. The breathability of clothing is determined by the material. Pure natural materials are always ideal, since they are an extremely insulating, have a longer lifespan than other materials and with that, are a much more sustainable option for designers.

 

As a future clothing designer, I want to find new sustainable solutions and make people's lives easier.

 

Elina Lehosmaa

Clothing designer

 

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SILENCE

Empty spaces and silence - that might be the real driving force of our overused term that we call arctic. A lot of the time, arctic is just an ad that works really well. Living in the arctic is somewhat more unpleasant than in warmer places, but it lures some special minds and misfits to it, where this place starts to feel like home to us. Entrepreneurs in Lapland have that one branding word that never fails to make an impact, the arctic. The word arctic makes you think of probably something related to the cold and untouched wilderness. This is a nice but rather blurred image that is created by the word, but it is great for commercialism. This word is a driving force that feeds artists, but also values one kind of creativity over another. Art is rarely about the need but rather about the survival. Labelling is the very thing some of them are escaping from. But we have to get along with people somehow, don’t we?

 

We have a dissonance of what we are expected to be and what we truly are. Every day is a struggle of suppressed emotions, actions you don’t want to do, and news you don’t want to hear. People cope with these feelings differently. Sometimes there is just an overflow of stuff to cope with. The information era is numbing.

 

One of the greatest things arctic places have to offer are emptiness and silence. A cabin in the woods can offer you everything you really need – warmth, food and water. Presuming that you have brought some supplies to begin with. Everything is available with just a little work. There you are free in the womb of a forest.  There you are only with your thoughts. That or just being, if that’s your mood. It’s hard for some people to be in that situation, but I argue that this is what the real secret behind the arctic minds is. You have all the time in the world to think, create and design. There is nothing unless you make it.

 

They say that here in the arctic, there are some really cool stuff like reindeers and northern lights. Well, they are great, but we stumbled upon reindeers because we were quiet. We noticed the northern lights because we had time to just look up at the skies. As my job in the field of audiovisual mediaculture, I try to notice those little amazing details that life consist of. Maybe after all, there are also northern lights there where you are reading this - you just haven’t looked for them from the right place yet.

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Juho Posio

VR/AR designer

 

© VELI KOURI

FINDING THE TIME TO RELAX

AND RECHARGE FROM EVERYDAY LIFE

 

Finland’s nature during the winter might seem dull and even a little bleak for some. For me, however, it is a place to relax. Even though as I travel and the forest landscapes can seem endless, I always appreciate them. In the midst of a busy and stressful time, it’s important to take a moment and just enjoy the nature around you. Whether it’s when drinking hot chocolate by a fire or during a walk with my dog. Only a moment wandering around a forest, on foot or by sled, can put my mind at ease and forget about the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

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The great thing about Finland’s nature is that you can enjoy it throughout the year. The never ending whiteness and the simplicity of winter makes it perfect. As the winter landscapes can be seen as rough and teeth clatteringly cold, in a way it also can appear as sensitive. The Finnish winter is pure and honest. It reveals itself just as it is. One characteristic that sums up Finnish nature, is how it’s tones constantly change. Throughout a day, there are many tones pure white snow can modify into. This change is also very noticeable during the autumn months, just before the leaves fall and nature decides to edit its colour palette.

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Immersing in nature and using our senses can make us really notice the vast amount of inspiration surrounding us. It’s a wonderful time to just enjoy the moment and treasure the silence.

 

Jenni Holappa

Content Design

© JENNI MARTIKAINEN

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THE IMPACT OF SEASONS

 

As an interior and textile designer, I love to work with colours. For me though, I have always felt that everything begins without them. Without colours in pictures you can see so much more. One can see a divergent world, and the opportunities in what it could be. Although colours differ so much in the arctic area, throughout the change of seasons and the vast amount of surfaces incorporated it, one can see a different earth via monochromatic pictures. Colours show one layer to an image and the lack of colours show another.

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Nature is the biggest source of inspiration for me in Rovaniemi. As the seasons change now from winter to spring, everything comes alive. This includes us humans too. As native people, we also live and evolve with the seasons. We rest when it’s time to rest. But as contrary to popular belief, for many people living in these longitudes, winter is the busiest time of year and summer is time for resting. As a designer, I feel the opposite way. In a way, I feel most alive when it’s light and I need to rest in the times of darkness. Seasons have a deep affect to me, as it does on the whole ecosystem, as if I’m a part of nature myself.

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Although everything varies within seasons, humans need to look closer and really see the (climate) change and how it affects nature. People also need to change. We must cut down on all that is excessive. Cut down the colours and the excessive building of new surfaces, so that we can concentrate on what is most important: good quality and sustainable design that centers on us, humans. 

 

 

Jenni Martikainen

Content designer

© MASAYUKI HAYASHI / NENDO

HAVE SOME FUN WITH IT!

 

When we think of Finnish or arctic design, we usually agree on the certain attributes that it contains. It has influences from nature, it’s simple, and it often comes in either the black or white colour. I’m proud of Finnish design principles. It’s honest, beautiful and well respected around the world. However, as I spent one year in Japan as an exchange student, I noticed a lot of differences between the two countries and their take on local design. There’s a lot we can learn from other cultures and their takes on design. 

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During the classes I took on my exchange in Japan, students used to make Powerpoint presentations with a lot of different colours and pictures that seemed a little overwhelming for my taste. They added some self-recorded videos of their progress and then added silly music with humorous elements to it. Were they clear, good looking Powerpoint presentations from a design point of view? Not in my opinion, but at least they had fun with it. The concepts some of the students portrayed also seemed silly to me. Colour changing umbrellas, wine glasses made of chocolate, and my favourite, the alarm clock that sends embarrassing tweets from you if you don’t wake up on time. If I would try to develop these ideas in Finland, they would most likely get shot down pretty quick. The ideas are silly, unnecessary and some would even say that they represent bad taste. Finnish people are critical after all.

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Is there a way to follow principles of sustainable and practical design, while creating something creative and out of the box with a hint of humour in it? A few years ago, while I was still wondering whether I wanted to study design or not, one of my biggest inspirations was Japanese design house nendo. Their design had something I was used to seeing in Finland. Toned down colours and simplicity. It also contained something that was not so common. The house nendo design had a lot of humour in it, with little tricks and stories as well. Discovering how Japanese house nendo comprises all these elements together, inspired me and made me want to work in design. Trying to create those little moments in people´s lives that make them think; ”Hey, I love that idea”.

 

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Inka Rauhala

VR/AR design

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© VELI KOURI

DARKTIC EXHIBITION OPENING NIGHT 

21 FEB 2018

For Arctic Design Week, Darktic recently opened an exhibition featuring the work of the students from the Faculty of Art and Design. The exhibition opening was held at the University of Lapland’s Hämärä Gallery on the 21st of February from 5pm onwards. The number of visitors was sky high, so the exhibition was open late into the night. What a success!

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The queues were long and the feedback was extremely positive. Visitors really enjoyed learning and experiencing the VR/AR elements of project. The design put into the content of the textiles, construction and lamps also showcased the talent and hard work of the project’s members. The exhibition includes a collection of works including the “Darktic Design Zine”, “Transparency”, “Snow Play”, “Silent Light”, “Thriving in Lapland” and “Ice Crevasse”. Lamps “Coordination” and “Trapetsi” designed and produced by two talented industrial design students are also on show.

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Make sure you don’t miss out, with the exhibition being open to the public until the 8.3! Feedback can be left into the guestbook and pictures taken at the show can be supported with the hashtag #darctic or #drk. Feel free to also follow our journey on social media;

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A special thank you again to our visitors, supervisors and sponsors for making this exhibition such a triumph. New York’s Wanted Design event is what we shall be focusing on next, taking place from May the 17th to the 21st. Watch this space, exciting things are just around the corner.

The photos above capture the highlights of the opening night of this ongoing exhibit. 

 

Viivi Kallio

Project Manager & PR

  • Facebook - Black Circle
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DARKTIC EXHIBITION OPENING / ADW 2018 

HÄMÄRÄ GALLERY 21.2, 5PM!

The Darktic Exhibition Opening for Arctic Design Week 2018 proudly opens to the public on Wednesday 21st February from 5pm onwards.  We are proud to represent the University of Lapland through the innovative works of the students from the Faculty of Art and Design. This exhibition and project would not have become what it has without the help and contribution from our wonderful sponsors.

 

Darktic is created in collaboration with the VARPU research project, Business Finland and the City of Rovaniemi. The exhibition opening night is also being sponsored by Arctic Ice Cream Factory, Sallan Villiporo and Ahlskog Tannery. The Arctic Ice Cream Factory and Sallan Villiporo are sponsoring some of the catering at the exhibition opening and the Ahlskog Tannery’s reindeer leather is used in the exhibitions textile design pieces.

The VARPU research project focuses on virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) in the context of industrial applications. It targets industry areas that are important to the Finnish economy, including mechanical engineering, the process industry, building, facility management, urban planning, living and security.

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For more info:

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Business Finland creates new growth by supporting Finnish companies to go global, as well as funding innovations. Their experts speed up the identification of business opportunities around the world and help transform them into global success stories. As a fresh organisation, formed through the merger of Tekes and Finpro, they continue to evolve by listening to their customers. Business Finland’s services can support you during the different stages of internationalization.

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For more info:

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The city of Rovaniemi, the enterprises in the region as well as the Arctic Centre and Faculty of Art and Design at the University of Lapland are experts in the field of Arctic Design and committed to its development.

​Rovaniemi is recognized as one of the design centers in the Finnish National Design Program and Arctic Design is included in the National Arctic Strategy. The city of Rovaniemi has gathered considerable experience in urban design, planning and architecture, snow maintenance, winter technology and transportation and urban culture in arctic conditions. 

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For more info:

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Arctic Ice Cream Factory is a local company located in the heart of Rovaniemi. situated on the Arctic Circle. They have a passion to unify the best ice cream ingredients with the northern natural products. The company serves a wide variety of flavours such as lingonberry, liquorice, fudge, bilberry, milk chocolate and vanilla. Arctic Ice Cream Factory’s ice cream parlour is located on Koskikatu 18, Rovaniemi.
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For more info:

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Sallan Villiporo is a company that specializes in 100% natural, alder smoked and air-dried reindeer meat, “Ren-Chips”. These reindeer chips are additive free and produced in Salla, a municipality of Northern Finland. The owner of Sallan Villiporo, Hannu Lahtela is ardent about the quality of the reindeer meat, being the number one importer of the meat for Finland’s best restaurants. 
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For more info:

Ahlskog Tannery was established in Finland during the 1920’s by Mr Hugo Ahlskog. The company has since been continued by his son Mats Ahlskog, who has developed the company and its production in luxurious and exclusive Scandinavian reindeer hides. The reindeer leather from Finland is used for unique and timeless designs. 

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For more info:

Viivi Kallio

Project Manager & PR

© VERTTI VIRASJOKI

Arctic Design Week is being held for the 10th time! This year it shall be held from the 19th to the 25th of February.  It is the world’s northernmost design week that comprises of a 7 day city wide festival, bringing together people and designers from all different backgrounds, countries and industries.

 

Darktic is proud to be a part of Arctic Design Week, as we seek to give arctic design the attention it deserves, showing our innovative skills and highlighting the vital role design plays in our lives. We want to represent the University of Lapland and the design mentality of the Arctic people. Our exhibition comprises of works containing design with VR/AR elements, interactive water and textile pieces, e-textile/smart garments and much more!

Less than a week till the Darktic exhibition opening ceremony! This will be held at the University of Lapland’s Hämärä Gallery at 5pm on the 21st February. The exhibition shall be open for the public until the 8th of March.

 

For an exhibition opening to run smoothly and successfully you need time, patience and plenty of work. Deadlines must be met, and your efforts must be set towards meeting your budget and creative specifications. But with the right planning, getting everything done in a timely manner can be accomplished. We have successfully managed to do this, lessons have been learnt and we are ready for the exhibition opening!

 

https://www.arcticdesignweek.fi

 

 

Viivi Kallio

Project Manager & PR

 

ARCTIC 

RECONNECTING PEOPLE

 

Living in the Arctic can in some ways be a pretty harsh. We have to deal with extreme weather conditions and other nature phenomenon throughout the year. During winter, the temperature drops below -30°C (-22°F) and the amount of snow we have to deal with is just enormous.

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When the summer is finally here, we feel energized by all the sunlight and whilst wandering around nature, we find ourselves surrounded by millions of mosquitos.

This may sound a little weird but despite all these natural obstacles, I’ve spent most of my time in nature whilst living in here. To me, these don’t feel like obstacles. They feel like a significant part of nature. Something that I’d forgotten about whilst living in Southern Finland and in a big city. Something that brings me closer to the question of what are we meant to do here on this planet earth. I have a gut feeling that it has something to do with the phenomenon called feeling. To feel.

 

Design should be about solving problems and making life better. Not only for people, but also for everything that there is. Since beginning to realize that we humans are really a part of this whole system that we call the Universe, I’ve found myself thinking about whether the design we do really takes into consideration all that we fundamentally are.

For the people living in the city, nature has been pushed pretty far away from us. When was the last time you walked barefoot and felt the earth beneath you? When was the last time you drank spring water? (those evil plastic “spring water” bottles don’t count).

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Although it would be an impossible transformation for us to suddenly move into the woods and live so closely amongst nature, we as designers should take bigger responsibility to really think about our creations on a larger scale.

So how should we design then? What should we prioritize as the leading driver for design? Wellbeing? The complexity of the term wellbeing makes my brain want to shut down when it comes to design, but hey, the world we live in is a pretty complex place… so maybe that’s something where the focus should be aimed at to make this a better and more humane place to live in.

 

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“In summary, design for wellbeing means improving the quality of life by combining artistic, craft -based, innovative and research driven approaches for individual, system and infrastructure level changes through integrative and collaborative processes. …

Design for wellbeing is not one thing, it is many.”

Designing for Wellbeing,

Turkka Keinonen & Kirsikka Vaajakallio & Janos Honkonen, 2013, 11 – 12

 

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Vertti Virasjoki

Construction designer

© VELI KOURI

ABSENCE OF LIGHT

 

Some people might question why do we want to live in a place where the amount of daylight varies from two to twenty-four hours per day. I can admit that in this prolonged darkness of the winter, the absence of light has had some effect on me. I also know that in contrast when the sun doesn’t set in the summer, I will also be affected by the absence of darkness. I have lived my whole life in the arctic circle and one of the best lessons that the nature has taught me, is that when we are deprived of something, only then we can truly start appreciating it. 

For a long time, light has been a source of inspiration to me. I have been photographing for almost ten years now and at first my interest to light was purely based on the aesthetics of it, but now as I’m studying industrial design I’m starting to take new approaches in the ways I could use it in my creative work. We all know that light is one of the key elements in sustaining life on earth. During photosynthesis, plants and other organisms convert light energy into chemical energy that can later be released to fuel organisms' activities. In industrial design student perspective, I’m intrigued about the possibilities of how human organism could benefit from that same energy. Could we for example use this scientific knowledge to make better treatment devices to match the needs of our aging population? That is something to think about.

 

Just as plants use photosynthesis, our body reacts in similar ways when certain wavelengths of light are applied. In humans, the difference is that the light energy is converted to cellular energy. With red and near infrared (NIR) light the primary effect occurs when light is absorbed in cytochrome c oxidase a protein within the mitochondria. The benefit of red and (NIR) wavelengths is the lights ability to reach deeper in the tissue compared to other wavelengths. This renewed cellular energy can for example be used to fasten healing of wounds, decrease pain in chronic joint disorders and improve exercise performance. Red light therapy has also given good results in in different muscular and neurological problems like Alzheimer’s disease. With wavelengths of blue light, we can boost our energy, alertness and mood. The increase of blue light during the day can also increase cognitive processes and therefore increase our productivity. There are also down sides in blue light: if we use our smartphones and computers during the night time the blue light can have negative effect to our circadian rhythm and sleep. If you are interested to learn more about the therapeutic effects of light, you can use these keywords on your search: Light therapy, phototherapy, heliotherapy, low level laser therapy and photobiomodulation. 

 

University of Lapland might not be Finland’s biggest university, but we have a huge amount of passion and talent. With design thinking, human-centered problem solving and innovation we can create design that matters. From extreme conditions comes extreme talent, so watch out world!

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Veli Kouri

VR/AR designer

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HOW I KEEP MOTIVATED

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Nothing inspires me as much as a deadline. Even though our DARKTIC team has been planning and designing non-stop for the past few months, there are always new challenges popping up. Along with this project, we have other studies that we concentrate on, so it’s rather important to be able to organize our time and schedules.

When there’s so much to do and so little time, one needs to appreciate the free time. In Finland, people have a strong work ethic and our standards are high. Most of the students in the creative industry work at the same time as doing their studies, because of the competition. It is also expected for students to graduate on time. So, what should one do to keep motivated?

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Here is my list of 5 ways to survive:

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1. Schedules. In the winter, especially when there’s a lack of light (and you don’t even know if it’s the day or night by looking outside), I need to schedule everything. I have an alarm on my phone for when to go to sleep and when to wake up, even if it’s the weekend.

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2. Free time, hobbies and exercise. Sitting on the computer all day long makes my head, neck and shoulders stiff, so I need to go to gym at least a couple of times a week. Exercise burns the stress out of me.

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3. Socializing. The company of other people is the best way to feel motivated. All the positivity I get from collaborating with my schoolmates really energizes and helps me. We meet with our DARKTIC team once or twice a week. It is motivating to share thoughts with others.

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4. Creativity. I do graphic design also in my free time, since I love it so much. I always have some sort of personal project going on. Every day I either draw, paint or write, sometimes a combination of them all.

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5. Relax and keep your eyes on the prize. Nothing is better than seeing the finished work and realizing what you’ve done and gone through to achieve it. When this project is completed and the job is done, then I will just, er, dive into another project!

 

Katja Uusikylä

Graphic designer

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© VELI KOURI

OPPOSITES ATTRACT​

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Looking for the theme for our project was quite a journey in itself, since tons of suggestions were presented and evaluated during the brainstorming process. When living in an arctic environment like Rovaniemi, you are surrounded with its unique nature wherever you go. It becomes a source for an endless amount of ideas and most designers seek inspiration from its depths. With nature being such a big part of the inspiration behind arctic design, we definitely wanted to include it to the theme somehow. We just needed to find a perspective that wasn’t too thoroughly used and had a twist to it. Something that showed the characteristics of living in the north but also unveiled the stranger sides of arctic minds. 
 

The people of Rovaniemi can really feel and experience the changing of the seasons, since the city is located on the northern part of the globe. We really liked the idea of how strong the contrasts are in the changing seasons. The difference in the amount of sunlight and colors you see during summer and winter, is phenomenal. During summer, the sun doesn’t go below the horizon even at night time. Whereas throughout winter, you’re lucky to catch a glimpse of light during the day. Winter in Rovaniemi means everything is covered in white snow and it looks like you're walking in a black and white movie. The rest of the year, however, has every little corner of our precious Lapland suddenly bloom with all the colours imaginable. I myself find it irresistible! It’s fascinating how simple and almost dull the nature can sometimes seem, but then again, it can also be so versatile and intricate. The way nature survives during the long winter and still manages to protect itself, reveals how clever and creative it is in its customs.  

The inspiration for using arctic contrasts as a theme came from the nature, but we didn’t want to be too literal with it. Instead, we started looking into how these contrasts influence the arctic minds. What kind of strange customs have people living here developed over time? How does an arctic designer see one's designs effected by the surrounding environment? We couldn’t possibly grow up here to become what some would call “normal”. This fortunately does not matter, since we are different and love it! 

 

Katriina Matikainen 

Project manager 

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FROM IDEAS TO REALITY​

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2018 The year we launch the Darktic project into the world. With months of planning, strategizing and designing, we are happy to announce that the Darktic project is up and running. This year will consist of 3 main events where we will be showcasing our project and the innovative minds of the University of Lapland’s students. These events include the Arctic Design Week (Rovaniemi), Wanted Design (Brooklyn) and Habitare (Helsinki).

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As one of the Darktic project’s production team leaders, my job has been to make sure that we stay on track with our schedules and timetables, that the team members know what they should be doing, that everyone stays motivated and interested in the project and that everything runs as smoothly as possible. I am also on the PR team, which means that I am the one who is in contact with our sponsors and makes sure that our audience, clientele and the general public are also on board with what we are doing. To make sure our followers stay informed, I make sure that our Instagram and website/blog is updated regularly. Though these months have mostly been very interesting and inspirational, they have also, at times, been quite challenging. This was expected though, since no project runs one hundred percent like it’s supposed to. Ups and downs naturally occur, which is fine, since no-one learns without a few step-backs.

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I am extremely excited about what we have achieved so far. The amount of work and hours that we have put into this project really shows. Watching the concepts evolve from tiny ideas to reality has been rewarding and enriching. Being a part of this creative and innovative project with these team members makes me really proud.

Can’t wait for everyone to see what we’ve been up to!

 

 Happy 2018!

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Viivi Kallio

Project manager & PR

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