Correspondance sous terre, 2025
TILHENN KLAPPER, ELLA SKOIKKA, ANNA TORKKEL AND SAIJA KANGASNIEMI
diary writing practice, printed edition & performance
Institut finlandais, Paris
Wednesday 21 May:
For a long time I have had this image in me of going under the Earth. In this image I am squatting and having my hands touch the ground. And then the feeling or urge to go inside, to dive or dig inside.
Correspondance sous terre is a collaborative project between Institut finlandais and Ehkä-production, which brought together Finnish and French artist-choreographers during the spring of 2025.
Performance and artist talk was held at Institut finlandais in Paris on Wednesday 25.6.2025. The performance was a continuation of the collective diary-writing practice that the artists shared during two months of spring when nature started to bloom and sprout. In the diary, they shared their inner landscapes through intuitive daily writings about ordinary and extraordinary life, as well as more invisible things.
Could inner landscapes dissolve into a collective experience and create moments of interdependence? What kind of connections could be created through artistic-spiritual practices between two countries, through a correspondence that travels under the earth? What kind of energy, questions and ideas could be transmitted underground and what kind of topics rise to the surface?
For the project Correspondance sous terre, artists Tilhenn Klapper, Ella Skoikka, Anna Torkkel and artist facilitator Saija Kangasniemi work collectively at the intersection of somatic practices, choreography, writing and language. The printed diary designed by artist Lia Pradal (Editions Païen) was given to the public in the performance.
Concept, convener and artistic facilitation: Saija Kangasniemi
Performance: Tilhenn Klapper, Ella Skoikka and Anna Torkkel
Graphic design: Lia Pradal
The performance event was produced and financed by Institut finlandais. The project Correspondance sous terre was supported by Institut finlandais within the framework of the pARTir initiative, funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU.
Photos and videos by Institut finlandais/Linda Peltola and Saija Kangasniemi.
In the background wall, exhibition by Hilla Kurki at Institut finlandais.
Read an interview about the project at the Institut finlandais website.