We are honored to be able to display the work of our friend and collaborator, the Finnish-born painter Jaakko Mattila, whose art has been shown in galleries and public spaces as far and wide as Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, and France. The patterns that often appear in his work – such as spheres, cubes and spirals – can be seen as nature’s building blocks, moving from the very small to the very large. He is fascinated by the unknown in the universe and life, aspects that even science admits it does not fully understand. This fascination with time and impermanence is at the heart of an exciting collaboration Jaakko Mattila has with Noma Projects.

Our collaboration with Jaakko can be traced back to the days when Creative Director Thomas Frebel served as Head Chef of restaurant Inua, in Tokyo. They met in the dining room and, before they knew it, were experimenting with plankton as part of Jaakko’s practice of developing food-based colors. When opening the Noma Projects space in Copenhagen, Jaakko soon visited us to work with over 20 different food colors, exploring how they transform over time. Today, Noma Projects is proud to host more than a dozen examples that reflect Jaako’s interest in creating ephemeral works that combine visual art, taste, smell, and place.