The artist Vesa-Matti Loir was considered a recluse. He was a “bat soul” who lived at night and spent long periods of time in his desert cabin. In reality, however, he also missed socializing.
Vesa-Matti Loiri, who died at the age of 77, is on Iltalehti’s podcast posthumously. INKA SOVERI
Vesa-Matti Loiri says Iltalehti LOIRI & Marjamäki podcast about the difficult feeling he experienced: loneliness and the label of a hermit.
The iconic artist famously spent a lot of time alone in his ascetic Lapland cabin during his life. He enjoyed being alone and having his own peace. The Lapin cabin was a life hole and a place of escape for him.
However, Loiri was no introvert, but rather an ambivert. He enjoyed being alone, but also enjoyed social situations and the company of friends.
This was a big contradiction in his life.
– In the final days, his loneliness was perhaps respected too much and he remained lonely, a journalist who knew Vesku well Tuomas Marjamäki reflects on Iltalehti’s podcast.
And there weren’t many friends left from the old Turhapuro group, for example.
– Friends became rarer around him.
The loneliness was partly due to the fact that friends, especially in recent years, no longer dared to contact Loir. Secondly, the artist was known for being extremely bad at answering phone calls.
– Vesku’s circadian rhythm was like a bat: he could call his friends at night, for example at two in the morning the call could ring, Marjamäki continues.
“It’s a pretty sensitive border,” says Loiri
Loiri was also notoriously bad at arriving as an invited guest at various events, to which he was diligently invited.
– If Vesku wasn’t the main star himself, he might not have arrived at all, Marjamäki remembers.
On the other hand, you have to remember that all celebrities are lonely characters in a certain way, because they have to be wary of their friends.
– Vesku has said that he has twice encountered a person during his career who did not know who he was. He was an eye-catcher and everyone knew him wherever he went in Finland, says Marjamäki.
In the podcast, Loiri speaks poignantly about her loneliness in previously unpublished audio tapes.
Jenni and Joonas come, the boys come, then it starts right away. Yes, it’s nice. I want to be alone, I enjoy it, but it’s quite a sensitive line, because it’s already starting to become seclusion.
Jenni and Joonas Loiri are the children of Vesa-Matti Loiri.
Listen to the entire episode of the Iltalehti Plus story here.
The LOIRI & Marjamäki podcast is published on the Iltalehti Plus service. The latest episode can be found here. All episodes can be found here.