Suomi Tale

To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee, One clover, and a bee. And revery.

Emily Dickinson​

I am Florencia Slatkis. I was born in Buenos Aires in 1978. Since I was a child I always had a singular feeling for Art and Literature, especially transmitted by my maternal grandparents, who, after World War 2nd, had emigrated to Argentina from Italy. My grandmother, a native of Livorno, was a great reader, passionate about languages. My grandfather, a Venetian, began in Argentina a remarkable path as an abstract sculptor; together with my family we really enjoyed his vernissages. In addition, he was usually known for his generosity and sweetness, representing in my life an essential image of values of education and respect.

During my childhood, my love for Visual Arts led me to participate in painting workshops and contests. Little by little I incorporated a particular perspective about emotions; in shapes, colours, compositions. Thus, perception became my main interest. At the university I studied Psychology oriented to research of the Creative Process in Neurosciences from a transdisciplinary approach. Although I didn't conclude the degree, this inclination always continued alive in me.

I believe that Art, in all its forms, could also be called "hope"; hope to turn sadness and other sensations into something positive, something that cannot be reduced to words, particularly amazing in children.

Suomi Tale was a little seed in 2014. The feelings that certain colours, shapes, stages, words, stories, etc., stirred in me, led me link my passions; Arts, Design, Literature, Nature and Languages gathered in a tiny cosmos of characters. Thus, one autumn day the first "Suomi Tale" rabbit came to life. From my stroke emerged Lars, Tin Moustache, made of fabric, in three dimensions. The minimal line, my search for synthesis came, evidently, from the synthesis that my dear nonnino had expressed in his works. From my perspective, the minimum can express the maximum; the purest emotion. Then I made Sybil - a rabbit based on Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Grey"-, wrapped in the ballet tutu I had longed to wear. Later, other animals appeared inspired by my fascination with fantastic short stories. In particular, those of Jorge Luis Borges connected me with Nordic cultures so deeply that I started studying Finnish. So I threaded a name for this tiny world. The first day I heard "Suomi," which means "Finland," the sweetest whisper was printed on me. A tiny story that would take place, then, in my favorite landscape, the forest; setting of "Suomi Tale".

This world is inspired by Literature, Nature and Nordic Spirit. In the publications, in addition to writing some verses of my own, I quote writers, artists and architects who marked my life. Each suomi includes a card with its serial number and the name next to its specific reference. The name, whether relates to Alvar Aalto, Anni Albers, Emily Brontë, Franz Kafka, Henri Matisse, Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortázar, Mies van Der Rohe, Oscar Wilde, Paul Klee, Piotr Tchaikovsky, Silvina Ocampo, William Shakespeare or another, activates a passage to discover a legacy. In this way, the background note, the identity of each "suomi", is a concept that fosters Education. The awakening of curiosity. My immense-little dream comes true.