Motstånd (Resistance)

Britta Marakatt-Labba

Embroidery

When I travel in a natural environment, I see the landscape as a panoramic view. The magnificent natural scenery with its distinctive hues of blue and the crystalline winter landscapes’ pristine snow are ever present in my mind. To roam freely in this landscape stirs memories and reflections. I walk along my forefathers’ well-trodden paths and ski along the migration pathways they also took. The reindeer’s constant migratory movement between the different fells makes me reflect on the infinite, and the winds’ yoik (traditional Sámi singing style) leads me to think about how we should treat what the Creator has given us on loan. We should take care of the natural environment we are permitted to borrow for the duration of our time here on earth, and we should listen to the ‘beings under the earth’ who wish to convey wisdom and guide us in how we should live our lives. I take the images and the yoiking of the winds to my heart, then I sew the first stitch into the fabric. And stich by stich, the story grows into being.