Talks about Karelia, concretism and art around the way

The 2024 events programme kicks off next Friday with Curator’s Film Night, which features video works selected by artist Jani Ruscica from the Saastamoinen Foundation Collection.

The EMMA Talk on the first Saturday in February will explore the influence of Karelia and Karelian designers on Finnish design. The panellists are art historian Anna Kortelainen, who has written both fiction and non-fiction books about Karelia; researcher and illustrator Harri Kalha, who has written about Birger Kaipiainen and Rut Bryk; and designer Justus Kantakoski, a specialist on Karelianism. The discussion is part of the Architecture and Design Days programme at EMMA.

The spring events programme features other discussions as well. On the opening night of the Experiments in Concretism show in March, three artists – Elina Autio, Maija Närhinen and Elina Juopperi – will talk about the background of their works. In April, the curators of the exhibition – director Pilvi Kalhama and chief curator Henna Paunu – will talk about the concept of the show and their selection of works.

In May, the last EMMA Talk of the spring is an interview by cultural producer Wisam Elfadl with American artist Tschabalala Self about Around the Way, her upcoming exhibition at EMMA.

Winter holiday fun, pyjama party and creative activities

Art Break at EMMA is a great way to spend the February winter break. Students of art education from Aalto University School of Art have put together a programme of fun activities for the entire week. You can spend the whole week with us or just choose the days that best fit your holiday.

The annual Children’s Museum Festival kicks off at EMMA in mid-March with a pyjama party that you can attend wearing your nightclothes. At the party we will explore dream worlds, listen to the very best sleep stories and put grown-ups to sleep. During the weekend of 16–17 March, all museums along Ahertajantie road will offer lots of activities and events, including workshops, performances and music.

Saturday workshops in the spring will feature visitors’ favourite themes from previous workshops.

The magic of movement and sound

The recently opened Dialogues exhibition presenting works from the Saastamoinen Foundation Collection has invited dance artist Anna Stenberg to interact with the show. In the performance scheduled for early February, Stenberg’s dance piece Hud [skin, iho] will create momentary contacts between different art forms and the works on display.

On six Fridays from March to May, the Ona Kamu’s performance Surface – Change Lies in Time will invite visitors to enjoy a nurturing experience of movement and sound in the museum gallery. To make the performances accessible to as many people as possible, they are scheduled to coincide with the museum’s free admission evenings.

EMMA will once again serve as the venue for hugely popular concerts on the first Friday of every month from January to April. The extended musical evenings offered free of charge are organised by the April Jazz Festival in collaboration with EMMA and WeeGee.

Remote events, guided tours and bookable workshops

EMMA organises monthly remote events for our newsletter subscribers. If you haven’t already subscribed, do it here and receive notice of the events in your inbox.

Also check out our brand new themes for art workshops and birthday parties.

The times and dates of the spring events programme can be found here. Unless otherwise stated, our programme is in Finnish and attendance at events is free with a museum ticket.