baselitz

Hans Hartung（German/French,1904-1989）

T1982-H27    1987    Acrylic on canvas

February 6 is Sámi álbmotbeaivi: the Sámi National Day. The day is a celebration for all Sámi people. The Sámi is an indigenous people who have their traditional settlement areas in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, this area is called Sápmi. The Sámi are recognized as a Stateless nation and have a national day, flag, and anthem.

History

There are several theories about the origin of the Sámi people. What we do know is that around 9,000–10,000 BC the ice retreated after the last ice age and Northern Scandinavia was populated. At some point, two distinct cultures emerged. The Sámi people in the north, and what later became the Norse people in the south. The first time the Sámi are mentioned is in “Germania” by roman writer Tacitus from 98 AD, but there are also earlier archaeological traces.

The Sámi organized the community based on a siida system, where different hunting teams formed the basis for larger community units, a town or village. They were nomadic and had seasonal settlements.

The Vikings both traded with and raided the Sámi. They believed the Sámi shamans knew a different kind of magic and often came to the Sámi for things like dream interpretation and to buy armor that were invulnerable. After the Christianisation the Sámi religion was viewed as devil worship, and the church believed you got closer to hell the further north you went. This attitude continued and missionary work accelerated in the 1700s, resulting in the old Sámi religion disappearing altogether in the 1800s. During this time assimilation became the goal, and this continued into modern times. The norwegianisation sadly did a lot of damage to Sámi language and culture. In the post-war period, the work for Sámi rights gained ground, especially crucial was the fight for the Alta River in the 70s/80s. Today the Sámi are recognized as a indigenous people and their culture and languages are protected.

Culture and language

Sámi is not a single language, but rather a Finnish-Ugric language group. There are eleven different languages. In Norway, the Sámi speak mainly North Sámi (Davvisámegiella), Lule Sámi (Julevsámegiella) and South Sámi (Åarjel-saemien gïele).

An important part of Sámi culture is Joik, one of the oldest forms of folk music in Europe. Joik used to be a central part of the shaman’s rituals and could be used to induce a trance. Because of this the missionaries condemned Joik as a sin. There are different genres of Joik, the most well-known is Person Joik. In this style the Joik is a portrait of a person, animal or place. You Joik a person, and then the Joik belongs to that person as a musical identity. This way a Joik can be a gift, for exempel for baptism or confirmation.

Inside Siberia’s isolated community of forgotten women. Photographed by Oded Wagenstein.

“In the remote village of Yar-Sale in Northern Siberia, live a group of elderly women. They were once part of a nomadic community of reindeer herders. However, in their old age, they spend most of their days in seclusion, isolated from the world they loved and their community. While men are usually encouraged to remain within the migrating community and maintain their social roles, the women often face the struggles of old age alone.It took a flight, a sixty-hour train ride from Moscow, and a seven-hour bone-breaking drive across a frozen river to meet them. I immersed myself in their closed community, and for days, over many cups of tea, they shared their stories, lullabies, and longings with me.On this series, the memories of the past, represented by the images of the outside world, are combined with the portraits of current reality.

By doing so, I tried to give their stories a visual representation. One that could last after they are already gone.  

(*Like Last Year’s Snow is a Yiddish expression – referring to something which is not relevant anymore)”