Found wood, paper mache, acrylics, embroidered felt
12 1/4” x 9”


*Tapio is an ancient Finnish god of forests and hunt. His family relations, as described in old texts - spouse Mielikki, daughters Annikki and Tellervo, son Nyyrikki - tend to be fluid, and other relatives are also sometimes mentioned.

*Petitioning Tapio and his folk - a cadre forest spirits - for a successful hunt was an important ritual in the old Finno-Ugric world. A symbolic relationship exists between Tapio and the Green Man, though in some ‘new agey’ texts, the similarities tend to be both romanticized and overemphasized.

*In present-day Finland, Tapio is a boy’s name. One of the first planned suburban communities (now part of the city of Espoo) is called Tapiola, home of Tapio. There’s also a Tapiola in Michigan, where a large number of Finnish immigrants have settled.