Espoo Museum of Modern Art
2025 – A Year of International Exchange at EMMA
In 2025, EMMA welcomed 160 000 visitors and significantly strengthened its international profile through touring exhibitions and cultural exchange, as reflected in the leadership transition at the end of the year. The museum presented a distinctive programme exploring material- and textile-based practices across art, design, and fashion.
“It has been exciting to join EMMA at the close of a year marked by exceptional international collaboration. I am looking forward to build on this foundation as EMMA enters its third decade in 2026,” says EMMA’s Director Krist Gruijthuijsen.
International exchange defined the year, spanning high-level cultural diplomacy and exhibition collaborations. Highlights included the royal visit from Denmark for the unveiling of an acquisition by Danish artist Poul Gernes, the Japanese tour of Tapio Wirkkala: The Sculptor of Ultima Thule, and the Howard Smith retrospective collaboration at Palm Springs Art Museum.
Nordic partnerships were further strengthened through the Swedish tour of Ulla Wiggen: Passage and a fashion exhibition collaboration with ALPHA and Nordic partner museums. The year also saw the launch of EMMA-Saastamoinen International Curatorial Fellowship Programme.
2025 exhibitions explored materiality as a lens for re-examining art and design histories, with a particular attention to textiles, organic materials and experimental practices. The changing exhibitions brought together Finnish modernist heritage and contemporary experimentation, from Draped – Art of Printed Fabrics and the first retrospective of Karin Hellman to the international group exhibitions Arte Povera – A New Chapter and Social Fabric. Site-specific art was highlighted by Antti Laitinen’s multisensory Chiming Forest, the eight commission in the InCollection series, and Dialogues exhibition of Saastamoinen Foundation was renewed with a new section.
The museum continued to strengthen engagement with its audiences and local partners. Collaboration with Aalto University was highlighted with two artwork collaborations with students and the EMMA Award partnership at the university’s annual fashion show. In conjunction with Social Fabric, EMMA Shop launched an exclusive product collaboration with Finnish fashion designer Rolf Ekroth.
The Children’s Museum Festival welcomed over 2700 visitors for a weekend of fun activities, and new public artworks were installed in Espoo, including a commissioned work by Pekka Jylhä in the front yard of the museum.
Throughout the year, EMMA advanced its work on accessibility and sustainability, among others by introducing exhibition texts in Easy Finnish and receiving recognition through the Sustainable Travel Finland label. Reaching audiences beyond the museum walls, EMMA Zone offered art experiences online through video productions, podcasts, and articles.
Eye on EMMA’s 20th anniversary year
New exhibitions in 2026
In Search of the Present 13 March 2026 – 7 February 2027
Axel Straschnoy 15 April – 9 August 2026
Howard Smith 9 September 2026 – 7 February 2027
Gerda Thesleff 25 November 2026 – 26 November 2028
Karin Hellman until 1 February 2026
Arte Povera – A New Chapter until 1 February 2026
InCollection | Antti Laitinen: Chiming Forest until 23 August 2026
Draped – Art of Printed Fabrics through 2026
Collection Kakkonen
Bryk & Wirkkala Visible Storage
Saastamoinen Foundation Art Collection, new display in the Autumn of 2026
