Forest, Trees And People: An Interview With Noora-Maija Tokee (NSFW)

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They say there has always been a special connection between people and nature. Noora-Maija Tokee is a Finnish photographer who was always fascinated by nature and its beautiful wonders. Ever since she was young, she wanted to document the life around her and nature became a big part of it. Now, she has an upcoming exhibition called Forest, Trees and People where she will present her stunning work and remind us why it's important to always nurture our relationship with nature.

© Noora-Maija Tokee

Hey Noora! Welcome to the Lomography magazine! What interesting projects are you doing at the moment

Thank you! At the moment i am working with my upcoming solo exhibition called the forest, trees and people which will take’s place in july 2017 in Tampere/Finland.

© Noora-Maija Tokee

I understand you were born and raised in Finland where you studied photography. How did you get involved with photography? What do you love the most about this job?

I got interested about photography in the age of 13 about. I started to take photos of my little sisters and friends mostly. I think my relationship towards photography on that time was more like recording of time. My relationship towards photography hasn't been always the same.

At the moment i feel that photography presents a big part of my life, because it has taught me to see some things differently and i have become more interested about nature through it. It is a way to create something new and develope as a human. For me making art is a bridge and opportunity to study and explore the symbiosis between man and nature from different kind of perspectives.

© Noora-Maija Tokee

You have a BA in photography from Novia University of applied sciences. What was the most valuable thing you’ve learned about photography through education and what was the most exciting thing you’ve learned through practice?

I think the most valuable thing, what i have learned from school is that pictures speak for themselves. The most exciting thing what I've learned through practise is that my eyes have evolved to see the errors better, when shooting for film.

Your work is all about exploring the beauty of nature and its unusual places and elements. When and how you discovered your connection to nature?

The environment where I grew up has affected my whole artistic work. I spent a lot of my time in the woods and nature in general, when I was a child. Behind our house opened onto a large forest, where the imagination knew no bounds. My childhood habit was to climb a big tree and sit there and watch the opening of scenery. Treatment of the subject is born from intuition, which is fed by memories of childhood landscapes and imagination towards the nature.

© Noora-Maija Tokee
© Noora-Maija Tokee

What photographic gear do you use at the moment?

I am using analogigal film camera and i shoot only for film. At the moment my tool is hasselblad medium format camera.

How did you come up with and idea to present this raw and beautiful connection by capturing your models being nude and free in the nature? How do you make your models feel relaxed and confident at the same time?

Usually I use family members as models and also myself, or people that are interested about art and nature in general. They understandt the nudity in my pictures, as a part of humanity and nature, not just an object to look at. Though, I don’t follow this style slavishly. I came up with that idea from symbolism art movement. Nudity is also a way to show the human smallness and vulnerability in relation to the surrounding world.

© Noora-Maija Tokee

Do you think photography can bring people closer to nature and in a way make them more appreciative of it?

Photography has taught me to see things differently and I have become more interested in nature through it. Photography has developed my relationship to the nature and has taugh me to concentrate more in details, not just whole. I think it can be the bridge to make other people closer to it.

Can we hear more about the creative process behind your work? Where do you find the inspiration?

Nature has impact on my work. Photographing is always in one way or another immersing myself in nature and observing the wonders of nature, which I approach as a poetess would. Inspiration and ideas comes mostly from everyday life. It can be a poet, text, color, smell, painting; anything that feeds the imagination.

© Noora-Maija Tokee

Which photographers influenced your creative thinking and career path?

My greates inspiration has been a Finnish/American photographer Arno Rafael Minkkinen. There has been many influencers during my artistic progress but I think my first favourite was Arno Rafael Minkkinen and his works.

Any upcoming projects you want to share with us?

At the moment i am working with the project called Trees and People. Trees and People is a work in progress, which deals the relationship between man and tree, from different kind of perspectives. In this series I use inspiration from Finnish folklore traditions related to trees.


All photographs shown in this article were used by the permission of Noora-Maija Tokee. If you want to see more of her work, follow Noora on Instagram and check out her Website

written by Ivana Džamić on 2017-06-04 #people #nature #nudity #noora-maija-tokee

One Comment

  1. xpisto
    xpisto ·

    Your pictures have great visual solidity and weight. Beautiful, overwhelming sense of depth. Thank you!

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