Matti specialises in green woodturning; his works are constant variations of the same theme. His interest in wood began before school age, but it was not until he found woodturning that he really became fascinated by the material. After developing an interest in woodturning, he studied ceramics from different cultures and eras, and admired the large, deep ceramic forms, wondering why there were no such powerful artefacts made from wood. The reason, he discovered, was that this demanding craft had almost died out in Finland. Craftsmen no longer mastered these techniques and methods, so he began a life long journey to learn through his own practice.

The process of making an object starts from cutting a felled or fallen tree trunk into suitable pieces with a chainsaw. These blocks of wood are then taken into his workshop where he turns them on the lathe with hand held chisels. The piece of wood affects the size of the object. Creating it is an interactive process as the material has its own story. He always uses green wood; it has all the tension and the power of nature still left in it. It's very challenging to work with this powerful factor, as these tensions in wood can ruin the piece at any stage of the process. He creates an object from start to finish in one session while the wood is still green. Subsequent drying and what happens to the piece while this is taking place is an integral part of the process. It affects the pieces: the forces of nature can be seen again as tensions are released. The pieces change their shape and surfaces become textured and tactile.

Matti's delicate turned closed wood forms are his sculptures. They are not intended for function, instead they fill the viewer with a sense of calm not only for their colour and softly undulating form, but their smooth surface on both the exterior and interior invites the viewer to enjoy the piece both by sight and by touch.

For this body of work, Matti wanted to create different groups of powerful closed forms in a variety of shapes and with different surface treatments. His vessels are only a few millimetres thick, making them almost weightless in relation to their size. Turning the wood to this extent allows a piece to shrink and change shape without cracking when it dries out resulting in a beautiful soft organic form.

'I very often use all kinds of 'faults' found in wood in my pieces, such as knots, discolouration and even natural cracks. I don't see them as flaws, but rather as the potential to create truly unique objects. For these pieces I used reclaimed wood that had been overlooked by other woodworkers and was destined to be buried or burnt."