Courtesy of Kim Simonsson
The Otherworldly Moss People of Kim Simonsson
Into the forest.
Follow almost any character in a story deep into the forest and you’ll find enchanting creatures, fictional or real. Centuries of oral and written folklore have demonstrated this, or in more contemporary works (think the Ents and Eol who dwell in the forest in The Lord of the Rings) as they appear as part of a cautionary or epic tale.
In a fairytale-like world inspired by forests in Finland, folklore, and the ambient hum of contemporary life, we enter artist Kim Simonsson‘s enchanting world of the Moss People and glimpse the vivid-green characters. Each sculpture is handmade by Simonsson in his Fiskars Village studio in Finland.
Childlike and nomadic, the Moss People are placed in nature, with parts of the forest integrated into them, such as flora, Often, they are carrying ordinary objects like a tennis racket, stick, or a western-style hat and what seem to be things picked up along their journeys as, Simonsson says, they go from place to place seeking meaning and reenchantment.
“The name Moss People refers to children’s innate camouflage,” he explains. “The moss-green figures blend perfectly into their natural surroundings, just as a soft carpet of moss covers the ground, rocks, and tree trunks and acts as a sort of protection.”
He has been recognized throughout his artistic career for his creative works through multiple exhibitions including at the Victoria and Albert Museum, National Museum of Norway, and Shigaraki Museum of Contemporary Ceramic Art. In 2022, figures from the Moss People were reimagined as large-scale monuments for the Lille3000 culture and arts fair in Lille, France, and more than two dozen appeared at the prestigious Biennale de Lyon.
Simonsson combines sculptural ceramics with industrial fabrication methods to produce the pieces’ rich colour. Recently, he integrated mysterious characters into the collection that were enveloped in a jet-black nylon—giving a flat, shadow-like appearance and velvety finish—and which he refers to as Silhouettes.
As we go deeper into the world of the Moss People scattered with Simonsson’s characters, it’s clear that we cannot expect what to find and will be captivated along the way.
Moss Children photographed out in the landscape of the Finnish Countryside. Photos Courtesy of Kim Simonsson. Photography by Jefunne Gimpel.
