Henna Asikainen: Lintukoto
This autumn, The NewBridge Project in Newcastle will present Lintukoto exhibition by artist Henna Asikainen.
Henna Asikainen has worked with landscape architect Usue Ruiz Arana and composer Ben Ponton, to develop a new sound work that emerges in the gallery amidst a forest of birds’ nests and foraged materials.
Taking its name from Finnish folklore, Lintukoto is a mythical warm, safe, haven at the far edges of the world, where the sky meets earth, and birds were thought to migrate to for winter. A chorus of voices both human and non-human resound the softly lit space, speaking to experiences of migration, climate change, and the possibilities of creating sanctuary in an age marked by crisis. Drawing on the experiences of those who have been forced to leave their homes, the installation invites us to ask, ‘can sanctuary still be found, or created, in conditions shaped by ecological collapse, displacement, and political instability?”
Lintukoto has been developed in partnership with The NewBridge Project, the Great North Museum: Hancock and the Natural History Society of Northumbria with support from Arts Council England and The Finnish Institute in the UK and Ireland.
The opening will take place on Saturday 1 November at 1-4pm. Everyone welcome.
The exhibition is open between 1–29 November 2025
Wednesdays 1-5pm, Thursday-Saturday 12-5pm
The NewBridge Project (Shieldfield Centre, 4-8 Clarence Walk, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 1AL)
People behind the project
Henna Asikainen
Henna is a multi-disciplinary artist of Finnish heritage with a participatory, and socially engaged practice. Her work explores the intimate and entangled relationships between humans and the natural world, intersecting with themes of migratory movement, climate change, heritage, and belonging.