Today I had the opportunity to have a little chat with Madeleine Harms, boat builder at the sail yacht Alanta, at Sjökvarteret in Mariehamn. And there they now work at full speed indeed! A wonderful Nordic project in many aspects.
Building boats "på klink" is a Nordic boatbuilding tradition and the project with Alanta focuses on the preservation of boatbuilding craftsmanship and on passing on knowledge from different corners of the Nordic region to younger generations.
Alanta has had boat builders from different corners of the Nordic region (including Norway and Sweden) and they have also had trainees and visits fråm schools of the mainland of Finland, in order to get as good a knowledge transfer as possible of the handicraft itself. But it has been a challenge, partly because there are not many who master the craft and partly because the pandemic and the restrictions it entailed.
Launching
On July 24th at 15 it's finally time for the launch and then everyone is welcome! Even if you can not get to Åland and Sjökvarteret physically, there is still the opportunity to take part through the stream that is now planned.
" – The support from Nordic Cultural Piont means everything to us. It allows us to make the launch of Alanta in a traditional way. Many people probably remember the launch of Albanus or Linden and this we hope can be an equally good memory and an opportunity to preserve knowledge around the craft. " says Madeleine Harms.
Nordic Cultural Point (NKK) is the Nordic Institute at Åland's (NIPÅ) sister organization and NIPÅ is NKK's local information point and offers advice to guide the right process in the application process.
Hip hop concert
A concert with Redrama is also promised in connection with the launch on 24 July. They hope that the concert with Redrama will make the event more popular and aimed at a wider and younger target group.
" – Some mean that you almost have to look a certain way in order to be a boat builder, with a checkered shirt and beard. We would like to change that image, and therefore we present the launch of Alanta with a hip hop concert - as a kind of cultural contrast. " says Madeleine.
Advisory session from NIPÅ
If you want to know more about which Nordic support programs, you are welcome to contact the Nordic Institute on Åland for an advice session. We help you find the right support program among all the different Nordic supports available.