Alpo's SavannahAlpo Koivumäki (born 1939)
About the Artist/Site
Alpo Koivumäki was a farmer in Kauhajoki, Finland, until he retired in the mid-1990s. After years of hard work, he needed to occupy his time, so he started creating sculptures, something he had never done before. During his active farming years, he had often repaired machines and tools with materials found at local garbage dumps. After he began making art, he saw the discards differently: now they were potential animal sculptures.
He says a machine part will sometimes seem to belong to a particular animal, but sometimes he has to look for a suitable part for a long time. He does not want to hide the origins of materials but rather enjoys leaving a visible clue to its former use.
Koivumäki has transformed scrap metal, plastic from animal feed packaging, wood, and rubber into an entire sculpture park full of exotic animals. Located in the middle of the Finnish countryside, Alpo's Savannah is now populated with animals the retired farmer has never seen in real life. He creates sketches based on printed pictures and nature documentaries, and then develops them into vivid three-dimensional statues.
~Minna Haveri
Update 1:
On May 13, 2023, Alpo Koivumäki passed away. Earlier that year it had been announced that he was selected as ITE-artist of the year 2023. An association of friends will take care of the maintenance of the site.
~Hank Van Es
Materials
machine parts, plastic, rubber, recycled materials, scrap metal
Map & Site Information
22 Puistotie, 61800
fi
Latitude/Longitude: 62.4241737 / 22.1758125
Nearby Environments
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