The 2019 exhibition programme of the Ateneum, Kiasma and Sinebrychoff art museums, located in Helsinki city centre, covers a wide time-span, presenting some of the finest works by the Renaissance master Lucas Cranach the Elder; an extensive retrospective of work by the Czech artist František Kupka; and an impressive solo exhibition of work by the Icelandic contemporary artist Hrafnhildur Arnardóttir, also known as Shoplifter. Visitors to Helsinki can enjoy high-quality and thought-provoking art all year round.
The Finnish National Gallery comprises the Ateneum Art Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, and the Sinebrychoff Art Museum. The Finnish National Gallery also incorporates the Finnish State Art Commission and the State Art Collection. Annually, the museums attract some 700,000 visitors.
The Ateneum to present František Kupka and contemporary takes on iconic works
The exhibitions Urban Encounters – Finnish Art from the 20th Century and Not Vital, paintings, which opened in October 2018, will run until 20 January 2019. A major international exhibition to open at the end of February will present František Kupka, the Czech pioneer of abstract art. In June, it is time for Silent Beauty – Nordic and East-Asian Interaction, an exhibition that will explore the minimalist aesthetic of art from the Nordic countries and East Asia. The Iconic Works exhibition, to be on display from October, will feature international contemporary artists offering takes on some of the most famous and beloved works of European art.
The Ateneum is Finland’s best-known art museum and the home of Finnish art. The images held by the Ateneum are ingrained in the collective memory of the Finnish people: the beloved works in our collections date from the period from the 19th century to modernism. Our hugely popular exhibitions of Finnish and international art open up new perspectives into the past and the future.
Goodness as the theme at Kiasma
The 2019 exhibition programme at the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma is built around the theme of goodness. The exhibitions and performances emphasise the ideas of giving, hospitality and encounters. In spring, Kiasma’s fourth floor will be taken over by participatory and experiential works. Impressive solo exhibitions will also be presented during the year, including the massive installation Nervescape 8 by the Icelandic artist Hrafnhildur Arnardóttir, also known as Shoplifter, who is currently living in New York, as well as the warm-hearted and humorous photographs and video works by the Finnish artist Iiu Susiraja.
Autumn attractions include Fifth Honeymoon, an exhibition of emotionally powerful photographs and other works by the Norwegian-born Torbjørn Rødland, as well as the Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson’s massive installation The Visitors, which takes its name from the last album by the pop group Abba. Also on display will be works selected from Kiasma’s collection that explore the human relationship with the environment. Furthermore, Kiasma will stage the exhibition Weather Report – Forecasting Future at the Nordic Pavilion at the Venice Biennale.
Kiasma is a museum of contemporary art at the heart of Helsinki. The museum showcases and collects the art of our time. It is part of our everyday life at Kiasma to engage in an ongoing dialogue with the audience, the surrounding society and the art world.
Lucas Cranach’s masterpieces at the Sinebrychoff Art Museum
The Moved to Tears: Staging Emotions exhibition, on display at the Sinebrychoff Art Museum, explores the interaction between painting and theatre over the centuries. To open in March 2019, the exhibition Heavenly Colours: Blue and Gold explores the allure of the colours blue and gold through their use in paintings, sculptures and artefacts.
In September, the Sinebrychoff Art Museum will present paintings by the great Renaissance master Lucas Cranach the Elder. The museum’s own works, Portrait of a Young Woman (1525) and Lucretia (1530), will be accompanied by enigmatic and sensual paintings of women from famous museums outside Finland. Cranach’s intriguing and ambiguous paintings of women have inspired artists to this day.
Specialising in old European art, the Sinebrychoff Art Museum is located in a building that formerly served as the home of the Sinebrychoff family, and a brewery office. The display on the museum’s second floor includes Paul and Fanny Sinebrychoff’s home with original furniture and works of art, showcases of miniatures, and the museum’s collection of art. The museum’s collection features paintings by old masters from the 14th century up to the 1850s. Temporary art exhibitions are staged on the first floor and in the Red Cellar space.
ATENEUM ART MUSEUM 2019
Urban Encounters – Finnish Art from the 20th Century 19 Oct 2018–20 Jan 2019
František Kupka 22 Feb–19 May 2019
Silent Beauty – Nordic and East-Asian Interaction 14 Jun–15 Sep 2019
Iconic Works 18 Oct 2019–26 Jan 2020
MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART KIASMA 2019
Pilvi Takala, Toinen vuoro 24.08.2018–17.02.2019
Meno–Paluu, Nykytaidetta Itämeren alueelta 09.02.2018–24.03.2019
Ann Veronica Janssens 12.10.2018–13.01.2019
Hrafnhildur Arnardóttir/Shoplifter 8 Feb–15 Sep 2019
Iiu Susiraja 15 Mar–28 Jul 2019
Torbjørn Rødland 13 Sep 2019–5 Jan 2020
Ragnar Kjartansson 11 Oct 2019–2 Feb 2020
Lee Mingwei, David Shrigley, Christian Falsnaes, Camille Henrot, Amalia Pica
8 Feb–18 Aug 2019
Collection exhibition 26 Apr 2019–29 Mar 2020 and 23 Aug 2019–3 May 2020
Kiasma Commission by Kordelin 15 Mar–28 Jul 2019
Weather Report: Forecasting Future 11 May–24 Nov 2019
SINEBRYCHOFF ART MUSEUM 2019
Moved to Tears: Staging Emotions 13 Sep 2018–3 Mar 2019
The Sinebrychoff Brewing Family 16 Mar 2019–5 Jan 2020, Red Cellar
Heavenly Colours: Blue and Gold 28 Mar–25 Aug 2019
Lucas Cranach – Beauties 26 Sep 2019–5 Jan 2020