Espoo Museum of Modern Art
A new sculpture by Pekka Jylhä rises outside EMMA, sending a message of hope and courage
Sculptor Pekka Jylhä’s new work The Rope Dancer now greets passers-by and museum visitors in the courtyard of the Exhibition Centre WeeGee. Standing nearly six metres tall, the work was unveiled to the public with a festive ceremony on Espoo Day, 30 August. The sculpture was commissioned in collaboration with EMMA, the City of Espoo and the Saastamoinen Foundation.
Created for the sculpture park outside the Exhibition Centre WeeGee, Pekka Jylhä’s (b. 1955) The Rope Dancer (2025) reflects on the uncertainties of the future and the courage required when the world around us falters.
“We are living in uncertain times, and it seems that the future of humanity on a fragile planet is at stake. In the midst of turmoil, I have sought a form and a story for our time. The Rope Dancer depicts a fragile moment: a human being who tries, despite everything, to make it to the end,” the artist explains.
The vision takes shape in a human figure bravely balancing on a large hoop in the shape of a planet. Inspired by Jylhä’s own daughter, the figure is both grounded and reaching upward towards the sky. The bright colours of the clothing symbolise belief in a positive future. “How can we leave behind something better than before?” the artist asks.
The Rope Dancer includes a poem by the author and dramaturge Maria Peura, which is presented alongside the work:
I made it all the way,
I carried my own path
Now I am rewarded,
within me winds arise,
the world is torn in two
I stand firm
Translation: Christina Saarinen
The Rope Dancer is the fifth artwork in EMMA’s sculpture park, which already features works by Eero Hiironen, Pertti Kukkonen, Matti Peltokangas and Raimo Utriainen. Jylhä’s new sculpture stands in the WeeGee courtyard near Leikki – The Museum of Play and the Finnish Museum of Horology and Jewellery Kruunu, welcoming visitors arriving at the museum hub on Ahertajantie. The commission further highlights the area’s significance as an important museum square in Espoo and as a continuously evolving international centre for museums and the arts.
In addition to this new commission, EMMA’s collections include a dozen works by Jylhä, previously seen in the Saastamoinen Foundation Collection exhibition and as a public artwork at Kaitaa School. The Rope Dancer was realised in collaboration with EMMA, the City of Espoo, and the Saastamoinen Foundation.
On Wednesday 3 September, 2025 from 6 to 6.30 pm, EMMA Club will host an online event in Finnish offering a glimpse into Pekka Jylhä’s artistic practice and his workspace at the Nallenpolku Studio Houses in Tapiola. READ MORE
