"Someone has to move slowly in another direction."

I met Jannik through her partner Maria, the owner of the yoga studio "Solskogen Yoga".  Solskogen  meaning Sun Forest (more on that later). I had already known Jannik for some time through the beautiful art, and reflections she shares at Instagram.

Jannik is an artist and Zen Coach, she claims she has always been concerned with humans, and the essence of being human. To me Jannik appears tough and skinless at the same time. One who  goes to war on the zeitgeist - with her own vulnerability as a weapon.

It is impossible not to be touched by her work.

AN ART PROJECT

I could have chosen about any of Jannik's art projects, they all get to me, still I chose this one.

The Reconnector
They are made of oak, alder, birch, roe, aspen, ash, chestnut, beech, juniper and linden. Hewn, carved and slowly shaped with ax. The fact that they are not sanded gives the objects an appealing roughness. The many traces of the ax blade are amazingly soft and somehow they make the wood more accessible to us. A reconnector appears as a beautiful declaration of love to the forest.

These two Reconnectors originate from a birch that fell by strong wind, in the winter 2017. The Birch stood on the south side of Sognsvann, it fell down on mossy ground. It was old for a birch to be, about 66 years old. Strong and solid even when it fell .- Jannik.

TO SHAPE SOMETHING - SLOWLY

It all started while Maria and Jannik still lived in the city of Oslo (now they have moved out of the city). For a while, Jannik chose the forest, right outside the city, as her studio. She worked with trees and experienced the calming effect they had on her. Therefore she made herself a wooden sculpture. A small object that she could hold in her hands and stroke whenever she missed the tranquility she experienced among the trees. A soothing meditation object, - a reminder that the peace is out there. In the forest.

A Reconnector is a reminder. Humans too have a basic need for calmness. We need to balance our fast-forward life with a slower pace.

To shape wood with hand tools only is a slow exercise. It requires patience. Jannik says it is also a reminder that humans are not above other lives on this planet. 

We are all nature.

This is from an unknown tree. The branch was found along Akerselva in Oslo. It was completely dry when I found it and hard as only hard wood can be. I made 5 Reconnectors from this branch, including my own. - Jannik.

Reconnectors are made from fallen trees. Whether it's wind, snow, lightning or drought, the wood used for the Reconnectors are not from trees fallen by the hands of humans. Also each Reconnector is "charged" by Jannik with intentions and good thoughts before it is sendt away to its new owner. When it arrives it does so filled with love, tranquility and good energy. All you have to do is to receive. Jannik will reunite 100 people with 100 trees. So far, people in Norway, Sweden, Australia, England and Italy have been reunited.

One of them is me.

You can read more about Jannik Abel and her work as an artist at jannikabel.no and as Zen Coach at livingexploration.no. All photos in this article belong to Jannik Abel and are shared with kind permission.