Comics artist and poet Jyrki Heikkinen lives and works in Tampere. In addition to his publications, he has also created series of drawings and collages as well as visual poetics. Besides the dualism of chaos and order, a characteristic feature of Heikkinen’s work is wonder at interconnected realities. Savupilvi (The Cloud of Smoke) is a story about the fragility of realities and turning points. The cloud rolling in from the east awakens the old gods of Savo, memories, and the protagonist’s dreams, while an alternative Kuopio, as an inevitable setting, unfolds page by page as a landscape of possibilities.
Mika Lietzen (born 1974) is a Turku-based comics artist known for his understated dramaturgy and beautiful drawing style. His earlier works include Alkoholi (2023), Death Metal (2024), and Pnuk (2024). Lietzen’s latest works are Hitaan juoksijan kirja (The Slow Runner’s Book) (2025), Skotlannin matkakirja (Scotland Travel Book) (2025), and Järven rannalla, radan varrella (By the Lake, Along the Track) (2026).