Revisiting Tove Jansson's Moomins
Created in Finland and beloved the world over, the Moomins are an unusual cartoon family. Brought to life by illustrator Tove Jansson during World War II, the mythical creatures are a balm for kids and adults alike.
The Moomin family of Moominvalley
White and hippo-like in their stature, the Moomins are probably one of Finland's best-known cultural exports. The exploits of Moomintroll, often away on adventures with his parents, Moominmamma and Moominpappa, and with friends like Snorkmaiden and Little My at their side, are detailed in different books and numerous animated series, including the new TV series, "Moominvalley."
Moomintroll and Co.
Tove Jansson (1914-2001), depicted here in a self-portrait with her characters, is the creator of the Moomintroll. The unusual name was taken from her uncle's tales of a "Moomintroll" haunting his house. The Moomins' snork-like appearance was first sketched by Jansson in the 1930s, after an argument with her brother over Immanuel Kant inspired her to draw "the ugliest creature imaginable."
The remoteness of Moominvalley
Inspired by the landscape of the Finnish archipelago, in her work, Jansson celebrated the natural world while sketching the challenges mother nature poses. Islands, including the one where imaginary Moominvalley is set, take on symbolic meaning. An essay she later wrote for adults picks that up: "The island — at last, privacy, remoteness, intimacy, a rounded whole without bridges or fences."
Hugs all around
The Moomins are quite affectionate, often hugging. The first book starring the creatures, "The Moomins and the Great Flood," opens with Moominmamma and Moomintroll in a symbiosis that pops up throughout Jansson's oeuvre. Released in 1945, near the end of World War II, the story follows the two on a hunt for a home. Moominpappa has gone missing — a reference to the men away at war.
Little My
Although she didn't appear until the fourth book, "Moominpappa's Memoirs," Little My has become an integral part of the Moomin fairy tales. Left in the family's care, the fiery adventure lover brings color to the cartoons with her red dress and orange hair. An acute observer and keeper of secrets, the tiny girl with a Freudian name could be said to be a foil to the more sentimental Moomins.
'The Moomins on the Riviera'
The wealth of adventures that the Moomins have undertaken has made great television and film fodder. Animations of the adorable creatures abound, including the French-Finland co-production, "The Moomins on the Riviera," based on the book of the same name. The cartoon traces a boat journey the Moomins take along with Snorkmaiden and Little My to the Riviera, a place entirely unlike their home.
In search of safe harbor
The Moomins are experienced sailors and their adventures often find the family rowing through storms or set adrift at sea. Their creator, herself a keen sailor, often used these tales to explore her own unease with unfolding political events. The metaphors about being set adrift and finding your way to safe harbor make the books appealing to both children and adults.
The studio in a tower
For their creator, the fantasy world of the Moomins served as an escape from the wars that had troubled her so intensely in the first 30 years of her life. "It was the utterly hellish war years that made me, an artist, write fairy tales," she said after publishing "Comet in Moominland" — a book she worked on in her studio, above, which had been bombed during raids on Helsinki.
A national treasure
With more than 2,000 Moomin-themed works and illustrations donated by Jansson herself, the Moomin Museum in Tampere in southern Finland pays homage to the imaginary family with dioramas created by Jansson's life partner, Tuulikki Pietilä, and original sketches. While the Moomins were introduced at the same time as Pippi Longstocking, the children's characters highlight different ideas of families.