Public artwork created using 700 shirts and memories from Jersey’s community

‘Dancing together’ has been created by Finnish contemporary artist Kaarina Kaikkonen using 700 hundred shirts and memories donated by the Island’s community. Produced by ArtHouse Jersey and sponsored by Butterfield, it is the inaugural piece in the newly launched, three year-long Butterfield Public Art Series.

The artwork was officially welcomed to the Island by Minister for Sustainable Economic Development, Deputy Kirsten Morel, and will remain in place until Sunday 20th October 2024 followed by the indoor iteration of the installation at ArtHouse Jersey at Capital House from 31st October 2024.

ArtHouse Jersey invited Islanders to donate a shirt that holds a special memory so that their stories can be visually represented within this moving artwork. People shared stories of loss, love, adventure, triumph, humour and heartbreak. The memories came straight from the heart and now ‘dance together’ in this artwork as a singular representation of the many voices and experiences that make up our Island community.

People can read some of the stories shared by the community by clicking here. Vinyl QR codes can be found on the pavement underneath the artwork that will direct people directly to the project’s webpage. There is also hoarding along the Le Masurier site on Broad Street which explains the project and shares memories.

Kaarina Kaikkonen, is an internationally recognized sculptor known for shaping urban landscapes and emphasising community through her installations. In her works, one can find references to current themes of humanity’s place in their own time and of basic needs that always exist regardless of environment or culture. Old clothes contain the former user’s presence, which wraps around Kaarina’s story and places the viewer before something new and unknown but, at the same time, exceedingly familiar and intimate.

Kaarina’s installations made out of men’s jackets and shirts are well known globally, including in her native Finland, the US, Cuba, Canada, Japan and Great Britain. Her first installation was on display in Helsinki in 1988. In Finland, one of her most famous works is the ‘Way’ -installation, which she built on the steps of Helsinki Cathedral in 2000. Her pieces can be found in several collections, such as the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, Helsinki City Art Museum, and Espoo Museum of Modern Art of EMMA. Kaikkonen studied at the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts School and was awarded the National Visual Arts Prize in 1989 and the Finland Prize of Art in 2001. In 2013, the Order of the Lion of Finland awarded her Knight First Class. Kaarina has also received international awards, such as the Public Prize in Den Haag Sculptuur in the Netherlands in 2004 and Honorable Mention at the Cairo 11th Biennale in Egypt in 2009.

Image credits: Max Burnett.