Saarijärvi Museum: Art and History All Year Round

Saarijärvi Museum is a modern and versatile local art and culturohistorical museum in the northern part of the Lakeland Finland. The main building of the Saarijärvi Museum is open all year round with its high-quality exhibitions. The outdoor area includes an extensive Sculpture park and a traditional vegetable garden. In addition to the main building, the museum has summer attractions in the Stone Age Village and Tapper Brothers’ Juhola.

 

Contact Information, Opening Hours and Tickets

 

Exhibition Schedule for the year 2026

Naturally Creative – Permanent Exhibition of Fine Arts in Saarijärvi
Open according to the museum’s changing exhibitions

The permanent exhibition presents art created by artists from Saarijärvi and born in Saarijärvi over a period of approximately 100 years. It also includes art created in Saarijärvi or related to Saarijärvi by artists from outside the city. The exhibition is divided into three sections: portraits and self-portraits, landscapes and contemporary art, through which the aim is to present a wide range of artists, eras and art movements. The works in the exhibition are from the collections of the City of Saarijärvi, the Beda, Katri and Aune Herala Foundation and the Saarijärvi Mannila Art Foundation, which are managed by the Saarijärvi Museum.

 

40 Years of Lovely Saarijärvi – The Anniversary Exhibition of the city of Saarijärvi and the Saarijärvi Museum
Saarijärvi Museum 19 Feb – 26 Apr 2026

Saarijärvi became a city on January 1, 1986 and a municipality in 1866, 160 years ago. Cultural heritage and the living environment surrounded by nature have long been significant in Saarijärvi. The exhibition tells (in Finnish) about the historical phases of the city and the museum, services, industries and businesses. The celebration exhibition sheds light on the everyday life, celebrations and leisure time of active city residents.

The Saarijärvi Museum is celebrating 40 years as part of the city’s operations, although it began as a local history museum as early as 1953. The foundation of the Saarijärvi Museum’s cultural history collections is formed by the collection of the local heritage association Saarijärvi-Seura r.y., which was handed over to the city of Saarijärvi under a separate agreement in 1986.

 

Fransu 100 – Frans Toikkanen’s 100th anniversary exhibition
Ansu – Graphic artist Anneli Klemola
Saarijärvi Museum 16 May – 13 Sep 2026

The year 2026 marks the 100th anniversary of the Saarijärvi-based graphic artist and sculptor Frans Toikkanen. Frans “Fransu” Toikkanen (1926–2008) was a peasant who became a leading figure in contemporary Finnish graphic art in the 1970s after making his breakthrough with his cat mezzotints at the Florence International Printmaking Biennale in 1972.

Saarijärvi-based graphic artist Anneli “Ansu” Klemola turned 90 on October 16, 2025. Klemola graduated from the Finnish Academy of Arts in 1959 as a painter. However, she is known as a graphic artist for her woodcuts that glow with strong, energetic colors. An encounter with a fellow Ateneum student, Frans “Fransu” Toikkanen, in the late 1950s brought Anneli to Saarijärvi in ​​Central Finland, to Frans’s home farm in 1960. This was the beginning of the eventful artistic life of the artist couple Ansu and Fransu.

The works have been brought together for the exhibition from the Saarijärvi Museum, the Saarijärvi Mannila Art Foundation, the Beda, Katri and Aune Herala Foundation and private collections.

 

On Instinct, with Time – Joakim Sederholm
Gallery Jarska in Tapper Brothers’ Juhola 13 Jun – 23 Aug 2026

The artist of the summer 2026 in the barn gallery Jarska is the Porvoo-based sculptor Joakim Sederholm (b. 1969). Joakim Sederholm wants to express humanity in his works, to deal with being human and the experiences of difference and togetherness. In his works, he wants to increase tolerance and compassion for others. Sederholm sculpts in wood, ceramics, sheet metal, bronze and combinations of these.

Sederholm was a student of Saarijärvi-born sculptor, academician Kain Tapper (1930–2004) and an assistant in the creation of many public works and exhibitions. Sederholm’s expertise and skill are still needed when one of the master’s sculptures requires restoration.

Joakim Sederholm was awarded the Saarijärvi-based Tapper Art Society medal in the society’s 30th anniversary year in 2023.

 

Saarat – Art by Saara Pylvänäinen and Saara Vallineva
Saarijärvi Museum 1 Oct 2026 – 10 Jan 2027

Born 90 years ago in Viitasaari, Saara Pylvänäinen (1936–2016) lived and worked in the village of Hoikankylä in Saarijärvi for most of her life. She focused her art on Piikkana textiles® from 1977 and on paintings from 1996 onwards. The nature of Central Finland with its different seasons served as her inspiration.

Saara Vallineva (b. 1982) is a visual artist, author and illustrator. She uses local and found materials as part of her works. The exhibition features mixed media works, as well as illustrations for books. The works are inspired by folk art, crafts, maps and cultural heritage sites.