The illustration used in the Light Snowfall series is based on Tove Jansson’s beloved book “Moominland Midwinter” from 1957. In the book, Moomintroll wakes up from hibernation and gets to know snowy Moominvalley and winter for the first time. The picture captures the moment when Moomintroll learns to like winter and becomes almost euphoric about it.
In the story, Moomintroll feels very confused. One snowflake after another touches his warm snout and melts. He catches them with his paws and admires them for a while. He wanders down to the sea and walks around there for a long time, so long that he feels light-headed. Finally, he gets excited and begins to whistle. He kicks a piece of ice ahead of him and looks up; he sees snowflakes coming down and heading towards his face. The air is full of them, and they are as soft and light as feathers.
The weather is getting warmer and snow is all he can see. Moomintroll is thrilled about the snow and throws himself onto a snowdrift. He gets covered by a light snowfall.
The blue dishes elucidate snow and cold
This gentle blue product family is different to the previous seasonal Moomin products by Arabia. The main color is blue, which depicts the cold of winter. Tove Jansson’s original drawing was made with a scraping technique, which is why the picture on the dishes had to be kept simple, using only a few colors. These illustrations have been done by ceramic artist Tove Slotte. She used Tove Jansson’s original black and white drawings as a basis for her work.
Describing the snow was one of Tove Jansson’s most impressive skills. The original “Moominland Midwinter” illustrations and descriptions of snow and snowing are based on dozens of Finnish and Swedish synonyms for snow. The childlike Moomins, usually hibernating, were a way to explain the author’s first magical experience of snow.
The series will be available a limited time only, from the beginning of October 2018 onwards. Click below into our webshop and sign up to our waiting list to be notified when the products are in stock!
