Borderlands – Summer in Kainuu 1890
(6 June – 15 September 2024)
At the heart of the Borderlands exhibition is Museum Director Tuija Wahlroos’ research on Akseli and Mary’s honeymoon in Kainuu and White Karelia.
Wahlroos’ research uncovers new information about Akseli and Mary’s almost mythical honeymoon, which is considered to have started the artists’ Karelian movement, Karelianism.
Gallen-Kallela envisaged the people in remote areas living in harmony with nature, being able to detect nature’s finest subtleties. The trees in the forests and the stories and beliefs of people in the hinterlands spoke their own language to the artist even long after the honeymoon.
The trip was the first joint adventure for the young couple, and they returned to their memories of it for years to come.
Guided tour to exhibition in English Saturdays at 3 pm.
Image: Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Landscape in Kuhmo, 1890. Oil on canvas, Gösta Serlachius Fine Arts Foundation, Mänttä. Photo: Vesa Aaltonen. The image has been moderately cropped.
Gallen-Kallela Museum
Situated in the Tarvaspää studio castle, which was designed and built by the artist Akseli Gallen‑Kallela (1865–1931), the museum presents changing exhibitions that explore the art and life of Gallen‑Kallela and his contemporaries, as well as contemporary art. The museum offers a rich programme of events and activities and serves as a central source of information on Akseli Gallen‑Kallela.
Come and discover both the familiar and the previously unseen sides of Akseli Gallen‑Kallela.