After a one-year renovation break, we opened to the public in April. At the same time, our new collection exhibition The Question of Time opened. Tammi, known for it´s solid expertise in children’s literature, is celebrating her 80th birthday this year.
To celebrate our new collection exhibition, together with Tammi, we invited leading Finnish children’s authors and illustrators to interpret artworks in a way that speaks to children.
Our specialist researcher Anja Olavinen explains the starting points of the book project: “The idea of books aimed at children started from the fact that we wanted to increase our offering aimed at children. The cooperation with Tammi and the writers was smooth from the beginning; the writers got excited about our ideas and we really liked their ideas. The topics were selected from the collection exhibition “Question of Time”. It was decided to hang Ferdinand von Wright’s Forest Landscape from Haminalahti (1880) in our new Studio space, aimed at children and young people, in which, in addition to the forest, a lot of animals and birds are depicted. This inspired one of the books, while the other was inspired by Akseli Gallen-Kallela’s First Lesson (1887 – 1889).”
Kaisa Happonen and Anne Vasko’s (photo) Mur – pieni lintukirja was inspired by Ferdinand von Wright’s painting, where you can spot up to seven bird species, as long as you have the patience to look and listen.
In Riikka Jäntti’s viewing book, Pikku hiiri opintiellä, the mouse has adventures in Akseli Gallen-Kallela’s painting.
The books will be in a leading role on Ateneum’s Children’s Saturday 20.5.
At the time, at the Ateneum, there are e.g. three fairy-tale moments in which both books are read. In addition, there is an artist meeting at the museum, where writers and Illustrators talk about their work.
“Children and young people are an important target group for the Ateneum Art Museum, and we want them to feel the museum is their own. Children notice the same but also completely different things in the museum than adults. They are very inspiring museum visitors in all their openness. People under the age of 18 always have free access to us,” says Anja Olavinen.
More information about Children´s Saturday & Tammi
Artworks:
Ferdinand von Wright: Forest Landscape from Haminalahti (1880), National Gallery / Ateneum Art Museum. Photo: National Gallery / Hannu Pakarinen
Akseli Gallen-Kallela: First Lesson (1887 – 1889), National Gallery / Ateneum Art Museum. Photo: National Gallery / Hannu Pakarinen
Other fotos:
Pikku hiiri opintiellä / author Riikka Jäntti (Tammi)
Authors of the Mur – pieni lintukirja Anne Vasko and Kaisa Happonen (Tammi)