Annual Meeting

The Finnish Center at Saima Park will hold its annual meeting on Sunday, October 18. The business meeting and election of board members and officers will begin at 1:00, followed by light refreshments.

At 2:30, graphics and textile designer Ben Beaudoin will present an interesting program that is open to the public: Finnish Design: From Independence to the Modern Day, a look at Finnish Architecture, Product Design, & Textiles from the Time of Finnish Independence in 1917 to Today. As Finland forged ahead to assert its own identity as a newly formed free country in 1917, its relationship to international modernism became an important part in defining that identity. Finns’ relationship to nature played a role in giving modern Finnish design its distinct look and feel while at the same influencing other great designers around the world. The simple clear and direct way these objects communicate resonates with Finnish people at a very deep level. We will start with afocus on Alvar Aalto as the pioneer, to Marimekko, through to a mention of some of the current designers that reflect the post-independence Finnish Design & culture.

Of Finnish heritage on his mother’s side, Ben spent time at Saima Park as a child. While researching graphics and textiles, he became interested in and inspired by Finnish and Scandinavian design. Ben recently established his own business and named it “Mukava”. A Finnish word meaning comfortable, pleasant, cozy…Mukava is the perfect name for his line of blankets, pillows, and home furnishings.

Members and those interested in becoming members are invited to attend the business meeting. Paid members are eligible to vote, and anyone can join that day. Annual memberships are $30 per individual 18 years and older; minor children and grandchildren are included. All are welcome to join; you don’t have to be Finnish!

Saima Park is located at 67 Scott Road in Fitchburg, MA. For more information about the Finnish Center at Saima Park, visit https://www.saima-park.org/ and Friends of Saima Park on Facebook. For more about Mukava, visit https://mukava.store