Ilona Rista

Ilona Rista’s Pine Forest Wall is a typical example of her relief design in music hall acoustics. This particular piece is a part of a series that portrays an urban forest, where a modern Finnish scientific and technical worldview and urbanized culture reflect upon their changing relationship with the forest. The material and the theme speak of a traditional way of life whereas the execution refers to adapting to the technological development of today.

Pine Forest Wall was realized for a series of concerts realized in collaboration with the chamber music orchestra Avanti at the Finnish Design Museum in Helsinki in 2013. The wooden relief made of birch was constructed using a computer-aided woodworking technique that Rista has developed during her artistic career. This technique enables her to freely adjust and strictly repeat patterns on a wooden board.

Light plays a significant part in Rista’s wooden reliefs, because it sets the tone in a space and adds depth to a theme. Light can be used to accentuate details and it can set the pace for the whole space. Light also brings out the refined characteristics of the material and the three-dimensionality of a relief.

Another relevant aspect of the wooden relief in music hall acoustics is the sound. Whether the relief consists of two- or multilayered surfaces, it allows the sound to be distributed evenly. Rista has a long experience in researching different music hall acoustics and other acoustic spaces. In New York, she seeks to visit local concert halls for her upcoming projects.

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