Fire

Fire captures time and space very concretely. Momentarily changing the physical character of the place it also changes its meanings. Fire’s ability to give light alone is a powerful factor.

Sculpture

Fire art sculptures are built from materials that burn, with the aim of controlling the shape and progression of the fire. Fire Sculptures are rather large constructions. Quite often, they reach a height of between 5 to 7 meters, while the width depends on the subject matter.

When the sculpture is designed, it is already contemplated in what direction and at what speed the fire progresses in the work of art. Burn time of a sculpture varies depending on shape, density and moisture content of materials and the weather on ignition day. - The wind is one of the artists in fire art.

Fire art sculpture stands up from Sweden

Fire sculpture is a new art form with a very strong historical linking and roots long time past in the Ancient Scandinavian history. Fire feels mysterious, primitive and it bewitches the spectators. Fire is connected to different types of rituals and beliefs.
- Long, long ago, fire meant the difference between life and death.
Finnish examples of communal fire related events are the bonfires at Easter and Midsummer, which today are still a part of a living cultural heritage.

The European championship in fire-sculpting in 1998 Stockholm, Sweden, encouraged european artists.

European sculptors fight mire with fire
......Swedes can't lay claim to inventing fire, but they're the first to codify it as an art form - not surprisingly, given the importance of fire in Swedish culture, from the giant celebratory ... ´"
from:Chicago Sun-Times Article date:January 17, 1999

Sculptor Gunnar Carl Nilsson of Sweden, founder of the European Fire Sculpture Championship desrbibes this art: ""fire art" is not about playing with fire or simply burning up a piece of art. Fire should transform the piece, not destroy it. The artwork must hold its integrity before, during and after ignition."
"It's very primal, for one thing," Larsen says. "Everyone is aware how dangerous it is. . . Working with fire is like working with wild animals; you can't turn your back on it for a moment."
Performing a full-body burn takes intense psychological preparation, he says. There are also physical precautions to make, including protective apparel. Even so, he ended up with second-degree burns on his arms after one performance. -:" Don't try this at home", he adviced.!

After the European championship in fire-sculpting, many artists groups turned to fire-sculpture with more confidence. The sense of unity with other artists of similar creative thinking from Sweden, Finland, Lithuania, Austria, Germany, and France has been essential in making this choice in favour of a new medium.

.Great finnish wood sculptor Eeva-Liisa Sorainen (Mölsä) was gathered artist group from Central Finland to take part this championship. The group worked several years together after a success in championship. Eeva-Liisa Sorainen is one of finnish fire art pioneer. Today the original group has broke up.

The European Symposium in Fire Sculpture was being held for the second time 2000. Fire and ice was the theme at the Lulaå ARcTic Festival 2000, in conjunction with Winter Cities 2000.

Today City of Rovaniemi and Kemi in Lappland shows most interesting site-psefic art using momentary materials: snow, ice and fire. RiverLights since 2001 is an annual fire art happening in Rovaniemi organized by the City of Rovaniemi. - Professor Timo Jokela, University of Lapland, is the artistic leader of the RiverLights Event. - Maria Huhmarniemi is a teacher in a fire art workshop at the University of Lapland together with Timo Jokela. http://ace.ulapland.fi/jokivalkeat/Projects/2008.html The Snow Show 2004 was a unique artistic collaboration between artists and architects of international renown. The SnowCastle of Kemi is the source of great pride as well as a true showcase of architectonic snow-work of the local constructors. After The European championship in fire-sculptingin became Fire-sculpture the main area of Latvian “Action Society” -artists, Experienced fire artists group - “Joint Stock Company”. http://www.dzilna.lv/fire/en/about.htm Fire Sculptors belong also to the progman of Latvian Open-Air Art Museum at Pedvale, expecially during middsummer festival. The Open-Air Art Museum at Pedvale was opened by sculptor Ojars Arvids Feldbergs in 1991. http://www.pedvale.lv/?l=1 The term fire art The term fire art stands for fire performances and fire sculptures. As forms of art, the performances and sculptures are very different from each other. Fire performances, where burning balls are whirled, are known by the international term poi. This form of art comes from the Maori culture in New Zealand. In their traditional dances, the Maori have whirled balls attached to linen strings. In addition to Poi art, the term fire performance can include many kinds of circus art, fire acrobatics using burning torches, as well as fire eating and blowing.   by Lea Turto, this article is published first time 2009 in hubpages.com using writername "birch and star"

RiverLight, Rovaniemi, Finland lanscape RiverLight, Rovaniem, Finland "Joint Stock Company” at Open air art museum at Pedvale, Latvia 2009