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The Forgotten Town and Thai House

Jan Håfström, in collaboration with Johan Celsing, tells us about the hidden treasures at Oterstranda in the South Fjord, only marked with a sign saying "Sculpture Landscape Nordland" about 15 km south of Inndyr. Here you can park your car and explore the idyllic carriageway on foot. A few hundred meters up the hill you will find a modest looking sign stating that one of 35 works of art in Sculpture Landscape Nordland is right here; A human encounter with nature and culture. Without knowing the story behind the artwork, visitors immediately get the feeling of entering an old settlement. The ruins mimic traces of one or several buildings, which once existed here. The location is beautiful, overlooking the fjord and mountains, and it is not hard to imagine that someone, once, chose to settle here.The Swedish artist got the idea after seeing a newspaper picture of a bombed-out Kurdish village. He had no intention of recreating the scene, but wanted to explore the traces and marks that people leave behind. The sculpture can represent something that has been, or something that never was - it is up to the viewer to decide.Not far from Den Glømda Staden (The forgotten town) you will find the beautiful Thai House, which is idyllically situated by a large but calm waterpond. In summer, the water lilies bloom on the mirror-like water surface and below the house grows green reed. You may come to believe the house is situated in a Thai landscape. But the landscape is as Norwegian as anything, and to emphasize the universal in nature one finds a Sami hut close by.Here you can find tranquility with incense and meditation in the Thai House, or in a wood-fired Sami hut. Both are open for visits, and visitors are welcome to spend the night here. When it is cold enough in the winter, the nearby pond is a great place to go ice skating.The Thai House and Sami hut are one of the results of the The Nord Land art initiative.