Inari Sámi Handicraft of the Past and the Present

“Toovláš já tááláš anarâš kietâtyeji – Inari Sámi Handicraft of the Past and the Present” is the first museum exhibition that focuses on Inari Sámi handicraft tradition alone. The exhibition introduces the audience to a rich variety of old and new Inari Sámi handicrafts and methods of crafting. It is produced by the Sámi Museum Siida.

The Inari Sámi are a group of Sámi that have their home region near Lake Inari, and they have their own language, way of living and handicraft tradition. The Inari Sámi handicraft tradition, the handicrafts themselves and their making form a cultural heritage which can only be passed down from a craftsmaker to another if all the sectors of the heritage are kept alive.

The artefacts of the exhibition take the viewer on a time trip that focuses on traditions; in it, historical objects dating from several centuries form a web with today’s objects, telling about the Inari Sámi idea of what is beautiful. The exhibition, created by the Sámi Museum, displays a unique collection of old and new Inari Sámi handicrafts and ways of crafting.