Heikki Kännö
Heikki Kännö (1968) is a Finnish author who has published four novels. His debut Mehiläistie attracted a lot of attention and established the central motifs of Kännö’s writing style. The story is set off when the German artist and founder of the Fluxus movement Joseph Beuys (1921-1986) is a Luftwaffe pilot on the Eastern front during the Second World War and must make a crash landing with his burning Stuka in the middle of a Crimean steppe, which is the start of a dream-like journey. This starting point aptly demonstrates how Kännö likes to weave mystical, esoteric and grotesque plots around historic figures or events. Also, several novels by Kännö feature artists, as he himself has studied painting. The motley crue of his second novel Sömnö (2018) also features all kinds of historical figures next to his protagonist, artist Werner H. Berger, from Richard Wagner to Ernst Kaltenbrunner. Kännö’s creative sensibility has been compared to Mika Waltari – Kännö’s look at recent history is indeed often quite acerbic and without illusions. Parallels can also be made with Estonian author Paavo Matsin, because Kännö also draws his ironic inspiration from the occult and alchemy, which turn the head of quite a few of his characters. Estonian readers can enjoy his fourth novel Runoilija, which begins in late 19th century, when the esoteric Rudolf Steiner is invited to visit the newly founded Nietzsche archive that leads to a meeting with Elisabeth Förster-Nietszhe, who also received an invitation, and her brother Friedrich who has dementia…
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