Today Erland Cooper releases his The Island 1961 EP. Comprising music, words from Tove Jansson’s 1961 essay The Island, read by Sophia Jansson, and field recordings by Kirsi Ihalainen, the EP was conceived as the audio accompaniment to an exhibition entitled The Woman Who Fell In Love With An Island, which opens tomorrow at Walthamstow Wetlands Nature Reserve. The island in question is Jansson’s beloved holiday island of Klovharun; a source of much inspiration for her Moomin stories.

“To me it feels almost like a soundwalk through her creative world, across the seas and back again into a city where local sounds of birds may interact freely with those of the score itself”, says Erland. “She seemed to have such grace and affection towards her surroundings and I hope this meditative score touches on just a little bit on her magic.”

Listen to the EP below.

Alongside the exhibition and Erland’s score is a trail through Walthamstow Wetlands, which brings together Tove Jansson’s characters, her message to respect the environment, and the rich biodiversity of the nature reserve.

The project is a collaboration between Walthamstow Wetlands and the William Morris Gallery, who are to hold an exhibition of Jansson’s artworks and possessions in 2022.

More information and tickets available here.