Ritni Ráste Pieski

Máret Ásllat Ivvár Ovllá Nilla Ritni Ráste, Ritni Ráste Pieski aka Ritni Tears is a Deanu river sámi storyteller, drag artist, choreographer, dancer and performer. He is interested in decoloniality, radical dreaming, queering and humour. Pieski’s most recent works include Indigenous Drag Excellence XXL and Girjái - a decolonial queer utopia. He graduated from the University of the Arts Theatre Academy in spring 2023 with a bachelor's degree in dance and works as a freelancer. In drag he is known as Ritni Tears. Amongst being an artist, Ritni Ráste has been particularly active in Queer Sámi issues within his community, for example as the main organizer of Sápmi Pride 2021 in Ohcejohka, Sápmi. In addition to these, he has been one of the headliners of Helsinki Pride 2023 campaign, and in the same year he was elected Queer Youth of the Year by Seta's Youth Committee.

He is currently working with Lotta Hagelin on Min olbmot, a series of works that humorously depicts members of the Sámi community in drag and in the form of written portraits.