Linnea promotes the county's crafts

Crafts and design consultant Linnea Nilsson returned to Norrbotten after studying textiles and working at a fashion company in Stockholm. “My task is to highlight and promote the crafts that exist in the county,” she says.

The Luleå Biennial is taking place in the House of Culture in Luleå, which this year includes both art and crafts. Among other things, there are elements that show the Sami crafts, the Roma blacksmithing tradition and the Tornedal weaving art. Linnea Nilsson studies the works and finally stops in front of a collection of knitted mittens, which gives an image of the colors, patterns, techniques and yarns used in the county.

Ethnologist Erika Nordvall Falck is showing off Skaite-Maria's mitten, the Jukkasjärvi mitten and other examples of Norrbotten knitting.

– For many years, Erika has collected older mittens and based on them she has developed patterns that she has then converted into knitting descriptions. It is a nice way to preserve and share knowledge. The same is done by Doris Wiklund, who has recreated Norrbotten fabrics, she says.

Linnea Nilsson, 36 years old, returned to Norrbotten and became the county's crafts and design consultant.

Digital workshops

As a handicraft consultant – or handicraft and design consultant as it is now called – Linnea Nilsson has arranged digital workshops together with the curators of the Luleå Biennial: Gathering around Sami stitches with Sami craftswoman Anna-Stina Svakko and a weaving workshop in collaboration with Älvsby Folk High School.

– The digital weaving workshop is designed so that participants receive a material box sent home with everything they need, including a weaving frame. Textile artist Ida Isak Westerberg will hold the three course sessions and guide participants through various weaving techniques, such as plain weave, rya, kilim and yorlakan.

The arrangement of digital courses and lectures has received a boost during the pandemic and has worked so well that it is now used as a complement to physical meetings (see examples of activities below).

The traditional mittens, collected and knitted by Erika Nordvall Falck, provide a connection
back in time. “At the same time, the craft is constantly evolving and always has been,” notes
Linnea Nilsson.

Textile techniques

Linnea Nilsson grew up in Luleå. After high school, she studied for a year at the art department in Sunderbyn, where she fell in love with textiles. Her interest deepened during a course in hand weaving at Väddö Folk High School, i.e. weaving on a loom. But the idea was never to become a craftsman herself.

“The plan was to first read something for pleasure and then continue with theoretical studies,” she explains.

At the Swedish School of Textiles in Borås, she studied pattern construction for garment sewing and then earned a bachelor's degree with a focus on textile techniques (textile design).

Production in China

After completing her studies, she was selected to do an internship at Toyota in Nagoya, Japan.

– My assignment was to develop sound absorbers, a concept for the interior of a car to be launched in 2025. Few spoke English, so we communicated mostly with sketches and technical descriptions. I was there for five months, a fantastic experience.

This was followed by an internship at the company Happy socks, where she quickly got a permanent job and then worked for seven years. At the end, as a “senior designer”, she was responsible for their pattern collection and production, which was located in countries such as Turkey and China. She describes it as an exciting time with many international contacts.

– A lot happened during the seven years. When I started, we were 23 people and when I left, we had over a hundred employees.

Understanding the craft

When her husband got a job at the University of Luleå, she moved with him, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

– I was on parental leave with our third child and thought that there probably wouldn't be any job for me in Norrbotten that was related to my experiences. My attitude was that we should return to Stockholm.

In that moment, the job of handicraft consultant was advertised. Linnea Nilsson applied for the position, which belongs to the cultural unit in Region Norrbotten. She started just over two years ago, in August 2020 – in the middle of the pandemic.

– Even though I have previously worked mostly with large-scale production in the textile sector, I have a good understanding of craftsmanship and its process. However, I had not worked in Norrbotten before; I lacked a network of contacts in the craft sector.

Julia Rensberg, Jokkmokk, is one of the county's professional craftsmen. Photo: Simon Eliasson

Provides conditions

To get to know people, she has spent a lot of time seeking out craftsmen and artisans, both professionals and hobbyists. Sometimes she attends courses herself, mostly to meet the participants.

– Now that society has opened up, it is easier, but it has actually exceeded expectations during the pandemic as well. The idea is that I will reflect and start from the need that exists, so having good contacts is absolutely necessary in this role.

Linnea sounds happy when she describes her job.

– I have always been a person who created myself. Now my task is to provide the conditions for others to create. There is a lot of creativity in that too, albeit in a different way.

Open approach

Linnea Nilsson has contact with handicraft associations, cultural schools, museums, folk high schools, educators and a number of other actors.

– A lot of it is about initiating and running projects and supporting the initiatives that exist in Norrbotten to promote crafts. To the extent I can, I will also be a support for professional practitioners. The craft skills are already high, it is more about making it visible to others, she says.

Traditionally, handicrafts have been about making everyday objects, such as containers for transportation, baskets for storing food, and fabrics for making clothes and other things. Today, the concept encompasses much more.

– I have a fairly open approach myself. I see it as spanning from intangible cultural heritage, where traditions, customs and practices have been passed down between generations, to today's handicrafts, where traditional forms and techniques often meet contemporary and future depictions.

Hard work meeting on Seskarö in September 2022. Photo: Simon Eliasson

In the One Square Meter Flax project, participants first had to grow and then prepare the flax for
spinnable fibers. Photo: Simon Eliasson

Great interest

When the invitation to the digital weaving workshop went out, 50 spots sold out in three hours. Everyone from 25 to 75 years old signed up.

– The interest in crafts is huge. The difference compared to before may be that you don't have as much knowledge from home when you enter adulthood. There is a knowledge gap between the generations, notes Linnea Nilsson.

Why is crafts important in society?

– Crafts give us the opportunity to interpret what has been, while at the same time reflecting the times we live in. For hobbyists, social interaction is sometimes the most important thing – crafts become something to gather around. For children and young people, and indeed for everyone, creation can contribute to increased self-confidence. The repetitive elements of crafts can also improve the ability to concentrate in children, for example.

Inviting designers

Crafts are also considered to be able to contribute to making more people want to visit or live in a place. The Formstark Norrbotten project emphasizes that design, crafts and crafts create added value in the tourism industry. Linnea Nilsson is a member of the steering group for the project, which is run by the Art Resource Center.

– By changing my title from handicraft consultant to craft and design consultant, the assignment is broadened to also include design practitioners. For example, this could involve small-scale furniture designers who are invited to various contexts. Previously, design has fallen between art and craft, so it is the right step to take.

Text and photo: Ulrika Englund

Facts

Examples of activities in the craft and design area in Norrbotten:

• In One Square Meter of Linen, participants have grown and prepared their own flax. During spinning meetings, the flax was then processed into yarn. This year, meetings are being organized to sew garments and embroider on linen fabric.
• A woodworking network is being built. The network will bring together practitioners who are interested in working with wood, both on a hobby level and on a professional basis. In early September, a woodworking festival was held on Seskarö.
• Digital learning spaces will be organized in collaboration with the Luleå Biennial during the autumn, winter and spring of 2022/23.
• The photo exhibition Crafts and form Norrbotten is currently on display at the Regionhuset in Luleå. The photographs are taken from the projects Hej slöjdare and Formstark Norrbotten. In order to make the professionals visible, work is also underway to develop a form and crafts map for Norrbotten.
• A "Young Hands" scholarship was announced this spring and has been awarded. A craftsman, a graphic designer and a Sami hard craftsman have each been awarded 35 kronor.