Äimärautio

Äimärautio is a community where horses are a way of life. Mundane chores and activities with horses are meaningful. The simple and direct encounters in the images of the book explore the relationship between human and horse. The images reflect the atmosphere horses engender around them.

As a child I spent all my free time with horses at the local stables of Äimärautio. The Shetland ponies Tarzan and Bölle taught me how to be with horses, and turned me into a horseperson for good. Recently, I saw a picture of all the riding school ponies with their grooms, taken 35 years ago. I was immediately able to name every pony but none of the girls alongside them. Horses continue to hold the same importance for me. Mundane chores and activities with horses are meaningful. When one is with horses, there occurs something in one’s brain and body that cannot be explained or expressed with words, something that would not happen without horses.

The series present everyday encounters in and around the stables. These are encounters often hidden from the public outside of the racing times and behind the scenes of competition days. They carry the atmosphere of the stables and project the way of life around horses.