Surutyö (Grief Work), 2024 examines grief and growth, through deconstruction and reconstruction of the artists first wig that they used throughout high school.
The shame of losing their hair in early teens, right before the beginning of high school, pushed Tuomi towards the use wigs in order to hide their autoimmunity condition called alopecia.
In this hair-textile work, Tuomi turns towards the conflicting object that brought protection yet caused physical and emotional pain throughout their youth; like a band-aid over a wound.
In the work, human hair from the artists wig is spun into yarn with a drop spindle and embroidered into thrifted linen fabric. The role and form of the expensive but now useless human hair wig shifts, as it renews as a valuable source of material. Through the act of crafting, Tuomi investigates grief processes physically and mentally, and lets go of their past identity built through the wig.
