emmi

FRIEND NR 1. - "I just came from the library, and you won't believe- this one guy just started wanking next to me!" / '' Ummm... Was he like all normal guy or, ...you know... ''special''?" / FRIEND NR 2. - "Do you remember that opening scene from the movie Bridesmaids? The one where the guy is like "I don't wanna sound like an asshole, but I really wan't you to leave"?... - ...You know, right after they ..''ahem!'', and he doesn't want the girl to sleep over..." / "...Well, it wasn't QUITE that bad, but..." "Well. If you are both okay with it..." / FRIEND NR 3. - / ''Do you recommend giving head to someone in a sauna?'' ''...Well that's not very useful idea.'' ''When did I turned in to some Genital Issue - Hot line?'' / ''...What do my friends think of me?'' / Well this, I hope: ''...I have the answer to everything, because I have risen to the level of enlightenment, where worldly and carnal issues no longer confuse me..." *above this* Yeah. This must be it!

Random notes from last summer. --- 29.6'12 Haapsalu. I feel fine. I'm cheery and beautiful, and ready for adventures. I'm not waiting or scared. Anyone or anything. ''Hello little flower!'' 26.7. '12 I blend in with strawberries. Goodbye Iniö! ...And the young men of your's, handpicked by God... 28.-29.7. '12 I understand what the hell ''sailing'' really means. August. / '' La la la, I'm picking raspberries, wearing a flowerdress, la la la" / I just met a friendly weasel. / ''Oh, it's starting to rain!" / RUMBLE! / ''Wow. - That meadow is really beautiful today.''

A memory, drawn 6 months ago. "In there lives huge rays." // "They come from the sea trough underwater canal, and they grow really big here, because here they have no enemies." "For fuck's sake now!" // "They ain't gonna do anything to you." // "OH YOU THINK?!" ''Heeey, Big Girl! I thought you ain't afraid of anything!" "Congratulations! You have found my kryptonite!" // "Uh, come on. Look, I'm going too." // "It's okay. Just come with me.'' ''WATCH OUT, A RAY!" // "AAAAH!" // "Fuck you!!" --- Swimming Hall, Thu. 25.10. 2012, at 8:45 / I drown my sorrows. First snow, Fri. 26.10 2012, at 8:35 / My way to work is beautiful.

A view from my desk, around 14:00. ''Can't get anything on paper.'' // ''Too dark. Too much coffee. Wrong pen'' // ''Tell what you did last weekend.'' //'' ''Last weekend I...'' '' SUNDAY. / As you can see from this image, last weekend I red a book and roller skated. --- ''I need more coffee...'' ''But what if your coma is CAUSED by drinking too much coffee?'' ''...I can't afford not to see if few more cappuccinos would help...'' ''But I'll balance out my blood sugars with ...This handful of crisps!" "It'll work!" ...WELL DID IT? ...IT DID NOT. --- Another view from my desk, at 15:35. ...15:35! WANT. NOW. THIS:

SEASONAL GREETINGS FROM EMMI VALVE! I want to share with you this splendid little Christmas party -tip! // OH LA LA, IT'S THE PERFECT DRESS! //...Until: //Oh no! The tights caused an awkward ''re-grouping of curves"! Then I came up with something: ''Hmm...could it work?...'' // YES, I'M A GENIUS! - A pair of maternity pantyhose! // No my elegance remains unshakable! - Use wisely this revealed secret of mine... // ...And dazzle at your Christmas parties! --- Tämän sarjakuvan orginaalin voi voittaa omakseen Osuuskunta Lilithin joulukalenterissa tänään 11.12. ! You can win the original of this comic from Lilith's Christmas calendar , only today 11.12. !

Here's something I drew and never posted because I wasn't sure WHY I drew it, but it must be destiny that I did, because now when I'm too busy to draw for this blog, I still have something to post. --- This comic is dedicated to everyone who can relate to it. (And for some of my old teachers. ''Train THIS!'') AS A KID, AFTER MY SWEDIS CLASS: ''I've noticed that you doodle trough all classes...'' // ''I used to had a classmate like that. Mauri Kunnas! (Famous Finnish illustrator and cartoonist) '' ''Wow!'' // ''But as I was about to say, you have to stop doing it.'' ''...But I wanna become like Mauri Kunnas...!'' // SOME YEARS AGO, AT AN ELECTION DEBATE: ''You did well. It just looked funny when the others were speaking..'' // ''...you were just drawing some kittens in you'r notebook!" // "Oh, I didn't even realized! - ....But that's how I listen!" // LAST WEEK, FRIEND PLAYED US HIS NEW DEMO TAPE: ''Oh crap, now I look like I'm not listening at all!" // ''But otherwise I'm gonna stare at the wallpaper and start to wonder some cross fertilization of a cherry tree or something.'' // ''It's a loose-loose situation. I'm either gonna listen and look like I don't, or look like I'm listening, but really not listen.'' // YESTERDAY, AT MEETINGS: // ''I wonder if anyone else has their notes in this form...'' ...AND LITTLE BIT MORE ON THE SAME SUBJECT: //''I should read this pile of paper. - 42 pages of gobbledygook in English..Blaaah!'' // ''Focus! - ...I could eat something. There's still leftovers from yesterday...- ...That dog I saw yesterday at the park was awesome. I wonder what the town gardener has planned for- This ain't working.'' // ''OK then. Let's do this!'' // ''Well you got some reading to do!" "Yes." // "... - Hey, I get this!'' // '' ... - It's all clear to me now! . That's rigth, that's how it goes!" // ''Are you getting it done?" "Yes." // 2 TEES, 2 'YES'ES, AND 1 CIGARETTE LATER: ''Yes! I made it! - 42 pages of information transferred in to my brains! // "Wait what?! I really spent happily 3,5 hours reading that?! . ...I thought it took like an hour and a half!" // "...I wonder if I would've been better at school as a kid, if they would've kept the classes at bars...?'' // THANKS FOR HAVING THE PATIENCE TO READ THIS!

So here's some recent stuff with my name on it. For Särö magazine, read the full story HERE . (In Finnish only) A mini-comic I made for Kush. Take a sneak peak HERE . Also, stay tuned, I might have some exciting news to share soon!

BRUNCH. I would love it if all my crisis could show up one at a time, every now and then. Then I could at least process them each individually. ...But NOO! All at once! Non stop mayhem! Focus Emmi! Draw ONE decent picture! Wow! A tea cup! Oh how great! - Hey guess who cares about your tea cups? - ...That's right! - No fucking one! --- Where I would like to be right now: This enamel mug is calling for me some how. I might need to buy it. It'll come handy when drinking coffee by the fireplace . ...On my boat trips. ...Which I shall start making when I buy that boat one day. Eat vegetables. Excercise. Work. ...Okay. --- Old, but still relevant:

JANUARY. Hey Saint of the desk. What should I sacrifice for you in order to get the next commission? // I've tried all kinds of things. -Lunch fruits from youngest to oldest. -Magnesium, iron, vitamin D, fish oil. // I'll soon start eating those fruits and vitamins my self! ...Instead of just having good intentions. // At least I'd be brisk when the shit hits the fan! // ...A 'bit incoherent? I can't tell my self, I haven't been eating my vitamins. // This time of the year is always a little bit difficult for me. - ...But really, this year it's been pretty OK. --- Did I hear someone say ''I really wish Emmi would post MORE stuff she doodled last summer!'' ...No? ...Are you sure? 'Cos I happened to find these... Here, just in case :

...And this is a lead (of course) to this:

Dear Diary! 10.2.2013 Sunday. I've been sick. / January was athletic. / Fuck! I'll turn 30 next year! / Shrovetide means buns! /I want pizza, but I'm lazy, so I'll just eat some sweet potatoes and reindeer from my fridge. / I haven't really gotten anything on paper lately. I need something like this. / I bought milk yesterday only because I thought I saw an old crush of mine by the milk shelf. ''Oh heck, not him!" / My book will finally come out in March. / I've gotten beautiful messages from old friends lately. If I haven't responded, it's only because I've been so touched I haven't found any words. You are amazing. /Now I'm gonna watch Ghost World. --- Tulips and pineapple figurines.

WHAT'S UP? We'we both been sick on turns for the past few weeks. ''Blah.'' ''Blah.'' // I've done my best to make us enjoy our days indoors. // I've even INVITED QUESTS! That's unheard of me! - Karo- '' Have you considered living picture? I'm quite interested of it at the moment. - It would be fun to see what you would film!" // -My twin brother and hi's son- ''Do you like it?'' ''No.'' ''Good. You'll eat it anyway.'' // ...But still: ''Aargh! I'm TIRED of being HOME all the time!" "Could we visit someone?'' So we went to a kid's concert. // ''I promise I won't couch at other kids if we go!" (Draws constantly) // ''...I had forgotten how ''Other Mums'' look like!" (Oops! My dress was really very decent!) // ''...And how ''Other Kids'' sound like!" // It still was the high light of our week. ''How are you feeling?'' ''Bad.'' // So. ...Back to square one. ''Which dress would you take? I think the one with golden ruffles is the prettiest.'' // ''...One can always dream... Of working! Lunches! Training! Cafes! Real reasons to put on make up! Adults! '' // Well. This ain't gonna last forever! --- Few weeks ago I had my firs scrimmage: ''Goal: - Not to throw up on the track! - ...Or go ahead. But do it during the warm ups, so it's out of your system quickly.'' --- But hey, I did it! Afterwords I felt like this old doodling: In my near future, I'm planning to mainly feel like this old doodling.

Well, that thing has been there, idunno, few weeks? I've tried drinking it away and overeating it away, but with very little results, really. // This time of year is always a bit challenging for me, and ... you know, other reasons... // I'll be fine. I'm sure something wonderful is about to happen any moment now. - But I gotta go cry in the toilet now. My pen broke, and I draw this shitty comic, you see. Oh yeah, I've been recently learning taxidermy! I started with mice. // I's surprisingly... comforting activity. ''Hello there little mouse!'' // ''Oh, where did the mouse go?!" //"There you are! Don't worry, I'm gonna give you an eternal life!"//''...Well, not very PRETTY eternal life, but still...'' --- Then, one morning my son woke me up by giving me this: ( Translation: ) ...Sooo... What was my problem again? Can't remember. (...''Candy cotton''? ...Well, we all know what I meant to write.)

Drawn in the spirit of my old diaries and notebooks. "When I was 19, I just wanted to spend the rest of y life like this." // My favorite flower was peony. (Still is.) I hated carnelians. (Which I now love.) There were many girls in me. // My opinion was that... / Coffee is meant to be black - Now days I sometimes put milk in it. / Cigarettes are meant to be red - At some point I started smoking blue ones. / The glass is meant for beer -Still agree. / Gigs I go to are free. -Now days I do pay. I wasn't yet scared of water. / I was scared of everything else. // ''Remember Emmi, the most important thing in this world is beauty.'' ''I try. - ...Hey, did you notice, I still wear this same jacket.'' ''Now that I think of it, it's quite funny that...'' // "I don't know what I shall be when I grow up! - I'm useless! I know nothing! - The only thing I seem to have any interest on, are these notebooks of mine! - Pages and pages of pictures and text about ''memememe'', aargh! I have to come up with something I'm good at! Something valuable!'' // ''...Ahem...''

Tää on ulkona ihan näinä päivinä, julkkarit Tampere Kupliissa 23.3. Book releasing at Tampere Kuplii, 23.3. (This one comes with English subtitles.) ''Besides loneliness, sex, and love, the book is also about loved one's death, longing, and growing up.'' Order HERE . / Tilaa TÄÄLTÄ . --- Ja tätäkin saa, esim. multa, hintaan 5e. Laita sähköpostia, emmi.valve@gmail.com Englannin kielinen. / In English. This you can get for example from me, 5e, email me; emmi.valve@gmail.com ''All You Need Is Love is a story about friendship and how we should appreciate the love we already have in our lives.''

Tampere Comic Festivals. ''Allrighty, Emmi. Just act normal now.'' ''Everything I say sounds weird! - No, it sounds like I'm TRYING to sound weird, like attention seeking teen! - Why don't I have anything COMMON to say?! - And why do I look like a secretary?! - Is it weird that I'm always wearing shit loads of make up?! - Relax you freak! - No, don't relax, it will only make it worse!'' MONDAY, 8:25 ''Hallo, Emmi.'' ''Hi, we are repairing the apartment next to yours...'' // ''And we need to come over to adjust the radiators...'' ''Yeah.... Well. I just put some pants on.'' // ''You don't have to. Ha ha.'' ''Ah. Right.'' // ''...I just some how got trough Tampere...'' // ''And now I need to let some strangers in my home...'' // ''What is this, some kind of face-your-inhibitions -theme-week?'' ''KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!" // "KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!" // "Okay, okay, I'll open the door!" // ''Sorry. I've been on the road for the weekend, and I'm still 'bit tired..." // "Ha ha." "Ha fucking ha." ''Are you home in few hours, or can we use the master key to get in and adjust the radiator back to how it was?'' ''Umm yes, no, I'm off to work pretty soon now.'' // "Phew, he's gone!" // "I feel nauseous. - I'll stay home. I'm nauseous and sick...'' // "Bullsshit! - You feel sick because some one penetrated your personal space before 9 am, and your capacity was already full!" // " You ain't sick! Get to work!" ''Sometimes it is so exciting to be me! - When everyday-life turns in to a fucking adventure! - uh huh..- Wonder what he thought about my unwashed baking bowls and those odd paper piles... - Something bad, I'm sure of." --- I am lucky to have my herd. '' (Roughly from a poem by Edith Södergran:) Run to the loneliness! Be men! Refuse to be shrunken dwarves!'' / (No man is an island, but I might call my self Åland.)

--- Sometimes just the sound of working makes me tired. ''This project needs some thinking.'' ''Tap tap tap tap tap ta tap tap tap tap'' ---

Something from my journal. --- Whatcha thinking, Emmi? --- Lunch at school diner. ''Hi. Is this seat taken?'' // ''No. Go ahead.'' ''...The whole diner is half-empty, you freak of a people person!'' // ''Mmm! Cabbage casserole!" "...Should have taken that.'' // ''Oh, colleagues! Excuse me, but I must go and sit over there. I have to sort some things out.'' ''Be my guest.'' // ''Jay!'' ''...Bummer!" --- Cinderella. Sort of. --- ''These fake leather pants keep embarrassing sound when I move.''

I don't have the time to translate this right now, but just by looking at the pictures you can get a pretty good idea how we do not spend the first of May in Finland. ---

My summer went by the sea, in Finland and Estonia.

I know, I know! I haven't updated in ages! I've been working a lot tough! SOooo.... What's up? I collected here some of my last year's highlights and news. Most of them are in english. (Oh, don't get scared of all the links! Read on, I also have something to ask from YOU!) Here's a story about my residency month. And here's an other one . I was published in amazing Kush , as yo can see below. (The Cat issue rocks!) Wonderful Arterritory also published this comic of mine. And here's an interview in Finnish, by Osuuskunta Lilith. (Haastattelu suomeksi.) I was in the coolest Zone5300 magazine too! Oh, and maybe the best thing was this ! My minicomic All You Need Is Love (for Kush), was nominated as one of the best Mini-comics and small press titles of 2013, by Thirteen Minutes! What else... Well, I learned taxidermy, moved in with my boyfriend, I bought a camera and fell in love with it (be my Flickr friend!) and started breeding beetles. Here's some doodles of beetles: ...And then I've been thinking what I want from THIS year. All sorts of awesomeness are already planned (You can find me from Maailman Kuvalehti -magazine, and Fumetto festivals, for example), but more is always better. One of my goals is to get more ORGANIZED, and PULLED TOGETHER with all the stuff I do. So, one thing that came to my mind, was A ZINE. I've always loved them, I love all small press shit, and it would be a fun way to show what I've been up to. So, what comes to being more active on this field, I now declare, that my New Year's Resolution for 2014 is to put together 6 issues of zine of my own! DOES THIS SOUND GOOD TO YOU? WOULD YOU ORDER MY ZINE FOR SOME VERY AFFORDABLE PRICE? AM I MAKING THESE BOOKLETS JUST FOR MY SELF? Please let me know if you would be interested. I was thinking about naming it Kostopolitan. (Kosto = Revenge in finnish) Look at my nice sketch here: Happy New Year to you all from my drawing table!

This one is from last summer. It was drawn and written to be published elsewhere, but for not so interesting reasons, never saw the day light. --- ''ATHEIST'' meets God and the Devil. I once met the Devil. / It came in my room in the middle of the night, and was up to something bad. / My bed was shaking and I couldn't move. It was there to get me. ''NO, NO, NO, NO!!!" / I released my other arm, and tried to scratch it's face ...which wasn't there. / Then it disappeared. Everything was back to normal again. An other time I met God. / I was about to kill my self, but couldn't get out of the bed. ''You useless twat!"/ ''I can't even organize one suicide! Worthless little shit - Uh, what now?"/ God raised me up from my bed to Heaven, and showed me the meaning of life. He showed me all the people as blades of grass, and the mankind as the lawn. / ''We don't need to breed or be strong. - We don't even need to stay alive. - There is no need to convince anyone about our individuality or superiority. '' / The meaning of human life is simply to TAKE PART to the humankind. So, I didn't kill my self then. / ''...I do know that there are names for these experiences. 'Sleep Paralysis' and 'Psychoses' '' / ''...But these stories are real, aren't they? They are real experiences. '' ''Aren't they?''

I try to keep my pen moving by drawing meaningless everyday things, like what I wear, eat or do. Here's some of those doodles. Working, ballet class, and yoga: My coffee and what I wore last friday: At the cafe: And some similar little drawings from Riga:

I love food. I should draw more of it. Here, look at some donuts: ...Or maybe you prefer macarons? Let's not forget our daily veggies: Study of pink cake frosting:

I just recently bought an ice cream machine, and it totally inspired me for example to turn my whole breakfast in to a variety of ice creams, but also to draw this comic. ... I could have just kept on drawing these forever.

Berlin, summer 2014.

I updated my cargo collective -portfolio, it only took nearly four years! Yay! Check it out here: http://cargocollective.com/emmivalve --- Tehtiin myös tällainen kreisi pienlehti hei! Tätähän saa vaikka Turun sarjakuvakaupasta , tai vaikka multa, emmi.valve@gmail.com. 3 e, 4,50 e postikuluineen! Liity Rakastelukerhoon, ihminen!

I'm still working on that cookbook of mine. It's a surprisingly large project! (I wish someone would pay for me to do it, that would help...) But, I think it could look something like this: ...And could also have stuff like this in it: (Details from a food comic I made for Maailman Kuvalehti)