The Spirit Persists Against The Winds of Time
Meditating on the fleeting nature of earthly existence and tributing to the π¦πΆππππΆππΆ and Finnish mythology, ππ’π―πͺπ΅π’π΄ by Akseli Gallen-Kallela embodies a testament to ever-turning cycle and myths that endure.Meditating on the fleeting nature of earthly existence and tributing to the π¦πΆππππΆππΆ and Finnish mythology, ππ’π―πͺπ΅π’π΄ by Akseli Gallen-Kallela embodies a testament to ever-turning cycle and myths that endure. Cairn topped with a cross stands as memorial and echoes to VΓ€inΓ€mΓΆinen departing from the world at the end of Kalevala as Christianity arrives, while tree stump evokes the silence of felling forests and loss of the old pagan traditions. Silhouetted against the fading sun, group of figures commit to heroic labor recalling the mythic battle against Pohjola, where fate and will unfold the thresholds of the realms. Smoke blends seamlessly with the sky in continuity between earth and heaven as transition of the ancient world in the face of the new. And like the little white flowers rising from the earth, the spirit persists against the winds of time.
Vanitas, 1907, gouache, Museum of Gallen-Kallela
Akseli Gallen-Kallela in front of the frescoes (Battle Against Pohjola detailed) in the Central Hall of the National Museum in 1928, Finnish Heritage Agency