The Milky Way, 2022

Britta Marakatt-Labba

Britta Marakatt-Labba: The image, “The Milky Way”, that I made in 2022, is about the circular – and If you look at reindeer husbandry, the changing of the seasons is of course something that always reoccurs when you work with reindeer herding.

In this work, I have been thinking about what is happening in society today. I started with the establishment of the Sámi Parliament in Norway, at the very top – and that building. And then, as we move further along the circle, we see reindeer husbandry.  How is it today? Well, today reindeer husbandry is under threat, partly due to the building of numerous wind farms – and that means that Sámi dwellings are also under threat. This is because it is no longer safe to sleep in the places where people have stayed before, so one has to keep moving.

If you travel further around the circle – to the bottom of the circle – you notice that the trees have been cut down. Who has cut down the trees? On the one hand, there may be various large forestry companies, but we face another threat: which is climate change. These days, it is very windy. Storm winds occur of the kind you absolutely didn’t see before, and it’s obvious that the houses must be moved when the wind is too strong. And then, when one digs up minerals, of course the waterways will be destroyed, which threatens fishing. What will you get out of nature, if everything is destroyed?

In Sámi mythology, there are three goddesses who ensure that everything is in place. They are the goddess of the hunt, the goddess of the door and the goddess of fertility. However, nowadays, the goddesses are also in a hurry! Instead of travelling by reindeer caravan, they now take snowmobiles so they can reach the Sámi Parliament quickly and sound the alarm – because now, it really is urgent. We need to work like mad to help more people open their eyes to what is happening to the environment we live in.

In the centre, we have the symbol of the sun. The sun plays a very important role in Sámi mythology – in the starry sky and our belief system. The two figures standing there represent the daughter and the son of the sun. They are really doing their best to restore the balance that existed before.

If you look closely at the stars in the centre, you will see faces. Who are they? They are our ancestors who are trying to communicate with us. There is also the Primordial Mother, who is trying to share her wisdom with us about how we should live in relation to this life, and how we must pass on that knowledge.