The exhibition traces the birth of Finnish modern art at the end of the Second World War. The dynamic and communicative nature of the Finnish cultural scene contributed to the country's reconstruction. The collections which had been taken from museums were speedily returned to them and the Kunsthalle of Helsinki soon started exhibiting contemporary art.
In the period after the Second World War, the art Yrjö Saarinen, Aimo Kanerva, Tove Jansson and Eva Cederström went in a completely new direction. Some of them adopted softer or more exuberant colour palettes and Ernst Mether-Borgström and Lars-Gunnar Nordström ushered in the era of abstraction. The exhibition offers a veritable panorama of contemporary Finnish art and ends with the group of Finnish graphic artists known as 'Viiva ja väri'.
The English edition of my latest book is now in the book shops. The Birth of the Finnish Modern tells about the early years of the Finnish modern architecture and interior design.
Modernism reached Finland during the 1920s and 1930s via the city of Turku. The key milestone in the new style of architecture and furniture design was the 1929 Turku Fair.
Architect Alvar Aalto, who lived in Turku, and furniture-factory owner Otto Korhonen worked together to develop a series of items of furniture that became classics of Functionalism and established a reputation at exhibitions around the world. They created for Finland a reputation as one of the leading countries in modern design.
Aalto furniture is still being manufactured at the Kaarina factory of Huonekalutehdas Korhonen which celebrated its centenary in autumn 2010.
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