In 2020, I received an invitation to an environmental art workshop in Northern Finland. At this time, COVID-19 had begun and had just reached Finland, and it was uncertain whether the event would be organised at all. For a week, I was designing my works in my home forest and held a workshop. This marked the beginning of the “Forest Project” phase of my artistic career, which has been ongoing since, which involves finding an appropriate site, excavating clay, and creating a temporary sculpture on the trunk of a tree. My work was well received and I was invited to create my sculptures elsewhere.

One day, while I was calmly eating at home, I suddenly lost sight in one eye. Quickly, to the hospital – the diagnosis was an arterial occlusion in the retina of the eye. My own body rejected me and my sight will never come back completely. The moment I lost my sight, I thought that my work as an artist would end. My thoughts wandered back and forth – What do I do now? Will I lose my other eye too? How can I continue to be an artist, how will life change?

For any person, the loss of sight is a tragic thing. But I’ve taken care of my health all my life. My work never affected my vision. According to the doctors, the cause was high blood pressure and cholesterol. I’m of a normal weight and I don’t smoke. The cause is genetics – my body was pre-programmed to sabotage me. It felt like my body was opposing my existence and rejecting my right to be and function.

However, after recovering for a while, I took the attitude of the glass still being half full, not empty – my other eye was still healthy, and your brain learns to compensate your vision for when an eye is weakened. I also have arthritis in my left hand, which hinders my work a little, but here the same thing happens: while the right hand works, the left one helps. I made the decision to continue my work as an artist.

In the summer of 2022, I decided to go on a journey to an art festival in South Korea and make my dream come true: Despite this blow, the journey continues. Even though my eyesight has not recovered, the pandemic has subsided and I’m still continuing my forest project. Nature gives people so much.