Mia Leijonstedt Arte artisan of the month

 

 

 

 

 

·              Tell us a bit about yourself (name, location, affiliations, and personal stuff).  

I'm Mia Leijonstedt. I make one-of-a-kind designer books, mainly for commission, but also more sculptural artist books. 

We're living in the Greens until the end of the year but not yet sure where after that. Before moving here I lived 13 years in the UK. But we're here for good now, no rush to move for a while. I'm warm for the first time in my life.

 

·              What inspires you? Where do your ideas come from? 

I draw my inspiration from the nature, the rough terrain of Finnish archipelago and Lapland, and now also from the rich visual culture of the Middle East. I absolutely adore contemporary Arabic calligraphy. Inspirational things happen and ideas flow when I handle and combine materials while working. I also find native cultures, myths and legends fascinating.

 

·              Greatest claim to fame (with respect to your craft) 

I have won twelve awards in the field of art and craft while working in the UK and Finland.

 

·              Where were you born? 

In Vaasa, West coast of Finland.

 

·              How long have you been doing your craft?

More or less 15 years.

 

·              How did you learn your craft? 

In the beginning of the 90s I studied at Helsinki University of Art & Design, with the intention of becoming an art teacher. It was a great all-round design education, very hands-on and included courses in artist books and bookbinding. While doing an exchange year in London, I got more into making books, it just resonated with me, and I decided to stay there to study traditional and modern hand bookbinding skills. I ended up completing a university degree in the subject.

 

·              Favourite film of all time? 

Most likely the French film Amelie. It has a quirky creative quality to it that stands out among the templated mass-produced films.

 

·              What was the last CD you bought?

I don't buy CD's. I often listen to Classical FM via internet while working on my books.  

 

·              Are you married?  

Yes.  If it wasn't for my husband, I might have given up making books by now. He supports my work incessantly. He is also an incredible designer in his own right.

 

·              Do you have kids?  If so please tell us more about them

We've got a cheeky little daughter who's nearly three. Without any prompting from me, she's just loved books from the day she laid her hands on one. And she's very particular about colours - it's not enough for me to describe something as blue to her, I also have to specify its hue!

 

·              How long have you been in the UAE? 

Almost a year.

 

·              Do you belong to any other groups? 

Before moving to Dubai, I was licentiate member of the Designer Bookbinders in the UK and I belong to a Finnish association of designer-makers.

 

·              What are your favourite materials? 

Archival papers, fine quality leathers, deer parchment and the traditional Finnish New Year tin which I use a lot in my designs

 

·              What is your favourite colour? 

Whichever suits best the project at hand.

 

·              What are you reading right now? 

I'm proof-reading the text on my GalleriaMia website after changing some copy. I'm very finicky about spelling errors, they reflect badly on the product. I have very little time for leisurely reading. I either read stories for our daughter or I read whatever I'm to create a custom-made binding for next. Although I avoid reading people's personal letters when they're sent to me to be compiled into artful heirloom books.

 

·              Any tips on selling handmade stuff?

Don't undervalue your time, i.e. don't charge 50 Dhs for something that took you 50 hours to make - you may afford to do so but it also disrespects those who need to make a living from it. Also, put effort in the way you present your work, it tells your customers how you value your own products.

 

·              Apart from creating things, what else do you do?

Snowboarding in the Alps. I also love the dunes, we go to the desert whenever we have time.

 

·              Your star sign

It has no relevance to my work. I wish there were more stars visible on Dubai night sky but there's too much light pollution here. 

 

·              How can ARTE be improved? 

Firstly I have to say it's an incredible feat of organisation to have achieved all this. In the future I'd like to see the overall presentation of the Soukh enhanced with better stands and product layout to better reflect the high quality of crafts for sale. It might also help us in getting space in venues where there are generally more visitors.

 

 

 

You can view Mia’s work on www.galleriaMia.com