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.

 

Exhibition Schedule for the year 2025

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.

Heikki Willamo – In the Arms of the Forest
Saarijärvi Museum 15 Feb – 27 Apr 2025

Photographic artist, nature photographer and author Heikki Willamo (b.1952) is one of the most significant contemporary interpreters and advocates of Finnish nature. In his images, nature unfolds as diverse, ancient and mythical. He has had numerous exhibitions both in Finland and abroad. During his long career, Willamo has published around twenty books.

Always On The Go – Paintings by Leena Luostarinen
Saarijärvi Museum 14 May – 31 Aug 2025

Visual artist Leena Luostarinen (1949–2013) painted large, colorful paintings. For example, her paintings of felines have become widely known, and she became a highly regarded Finnish artist in the 1980s. In 1988, she was chosen as the Artist of the Year at the Helsinki Festival. Luostarinen had a significant influence on later generations of artists. She worked as a lecturer and professor of painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in the 1990s.

VIRTAAVAA – Sculptures by Markku Hirvelä
Tapper Brothers’ Juhola, Gallery Jarska 14 Jun – 17 Aug 2025

Markku Hirvelä is a Kotka based sculptor born in Rovaniemi. He graduated as a sculptor from the Finnish Academy of Arts in 1984. During and after his studies, he worked for several years as an assistant to Kain Tapper and Heikki Häiväoja. His first solo exhibition was at the Galleria Sculptor in Helsinki in 1987. Hirvelä has held several solo exhibitions in Finland and participated in numerous group exhibitions around the world. Hirvelä’s works are in several art collections. He has won several sculpture competitions and has created public sculptures.

Treasuring the Art Heritage – Art from the collections of the Saarijärvi Mannila Art Foundation and the Beda, Katri and Aune Herala Foundation
Saarijärvi Museum 19 Sep 2025 – 25 Jan 2026

The local art foundations’ 40th anniversary exhibition, curated from the collections of the Saarijärvi Mannila Art Foundation (est. 1985) and the Beda, Katri and Aune Herala Foundation (est. 1986), presents an extensive selection of paintings, sculptures and graphics from the art foundations’ collections.

 

Contact Information, Opening Hours and Tickets