Helsinki's Cultural Renaissance: How the City's Unique Programs are Enhancing Lives from Childhood and Beyond
Photo: Julia Kivelä, Visit Finland
The World Happiness Report has anointed Finland as the world's happiest country for the six straight year. Now Helsinki, Finland’s capital, reveals three ways in which art and culture play pivotal role in fostering a good life from early childhood.
Studies have attributed Finnish happiness to high-quality education, affordable healthcare, social stability, and work-life balance. Making art and cultural services accessible to a wider audience has also positively contributed to overall happiness. The City of Helsinki has been a leader in making cultural experiences more affordable and appealing to a broader audience, all while maintaining world-class standards.
HAM Helsinki Art Museum, is a shining example of this commitment, looking after a vast collection of 10,000 works of art that belong to all of Helsinki’s residents. Roughly, 2,500 of these pieces can be found in public spaces across the city, from schools and day-care centers to public parks. This is thanks in part to Helsinki’s Percent for Art policy, which has allocated approximately one percent of construction project budget for public art since 1991.
"Events and cultural experiences in Helsinki are designed for everybody, regardless of their socioeconomic status. We call it a Nordic approach to art and culture – a key enabler of a good life”, says Mari Männistö, Culture Director at the City of Helsinki. “To make the impact real – and the ensuing happiness long-lasting, Helsinki is singularly focused on serving its residents from retirees to toddlers", she continues.
To better understand the Nordic approach to art and culture and to maybe inspire other cities and countries, Helsinki is featuring three real-life stories on the topic.
Photo: Petri Anttila, Helsinki Phillharmonic Orchestra
Introducing Culture to Children at an Early Age
Helsinki’s Culture Kids Program is a unique initiative inviting all children born in and after 2020 to participate, it has already attracted 13.167 participants and counting. Impressively, between 66-69% of children born in 2020 or 2021 and living in Helsinki are currently involved in the program. Each child is assigned a cultural operator who sponsors them and offers their family personal experiences with the arts, including invitations to at least two cultural events each year that are tailored to the child's developmental stage and designed to promote their family's well-being.
"Every child has an assigned cultural institution, which becomes the familiar go-to place for the child and its family. More than 30 art and cultural organizations are engaged. The kids are annually invited to two events until they start their free basic education. For them, these cultural events are free of charge", explains Mari Männistö.
Co-creation with Cultural Actors, Schools, and Libraries
The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra is doing more than just playing music for concert-goers, it also has innovative outreach programs. The Orchestra is part of the Culture Kids program and regularly collaborates with schools, music institutes and educators in the Helsinki area.
“We invite schools and student groups to general rehearsals for free and collaborate with music institutes to organize Little Overture - concerts before symphony concerts. In addition, we are taking part in the Orchestra Academy of the Helsinki Music Centre. It creates a unique learning environment in orchestral music for future professionals, studying in the world-famous Sibelius Academy”, Aleksi Malmberg, General Manager of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra.
There are also multiple free chamber music concerts in public libraries free-of-charge for all ages. Helsinki's 700,000 residents are served by an exceptionally wide library network: 37 in total across the city.
Helsinki Biennial – an international contemporary art exhibition organized for the second time this coming summer – also provides an excellent example of this co-creation approach. They have developed teaching materials on the Thinglink platform that are available to teachers, and they form part of the cultural curriculum for fifth graders in Helsinki inviting all 5th graders to visit the Biennial free of charge.
Nsambu & Pieski: This is an invitation (2023), Generation 2023 performance. Photo: Stella Ojala / Amos Rex
Giving Space for Youth to Have Their Own Voice Heard
Amos Rex, one of the most popular art museums in Helsinki, is currently showcasing, Generation 2023, an exhibition which features the thoughts of young people in today's unpredictable world. The exhibition shows art by 50 artists aged 15–23.
"This triennial was born out of joint discussions between Amos Rex and the Helsinki Youth Services. Now every three years we give space to very young artists. This is one of our boldest ventures. In their works, young artists seek new ways to approach the most pressing issues of our time; the state of nature and its coexistence with humankind, norms related to gender identity and appearance, and digital exhaustion", explains Kai Kartio, Director of Amos Rex.
The exhibition is open until August 20th in Helsinki.
Unleash your curiosity about Finnish culture in Helsinki and in the States
While the above examples showcase Helsinki's rich cultural offerings from the perspective of children and youths, the city has much to offer people of all ages throughout the year. With a diverse range of unique cultural events and experiences planned for 2023, there is something for everyone to enjoy.
There are multiple great exhibition openings, such as world-famous Tom of Finland in Kiasma, Museum of Contemporary Art, and Albert Edelfelt, in Ateneum Art Museum, Finnish National Gallery, which recently opened its doors after a year-long renovation, and Helsinki Biennial, a contemporary art event, taking place for the second time in summer 2023, June until September.
When traveling to Helsinki, MyHelsinki.fi, the official website of the city marketing company Helsinki Partners, is the local guide for discovering the most inspiring sights, events, and novelties in Helsinki.
You can unleash your curiosity about Finnish cultural experiences also in the U.S. by visiting Iiu Susiraja's exhibition "A Style Called a Dead Fish," currently on display at MoMA PS1 in New York City until September 4th. Additionally, the upcoming Performa Biennial in New York is set to showcase Finnish art and present new works from Finnish artists this November.
You can also feel the rhythm of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra under Susanna Mälkki on May 8th in Washington, D.C., at Kennedy Center Concert Hall, and on the 9th at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Other Finnish artists will also be showcasing their works across the United States this year. Kaarina Kaikkonen's commissioned piece, Flying Rivers, will be exhibited at The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. Jenna Sutela's site-specific installation will open at the Swiss Institute in New York's East Village. AllTogether, a group exhibition curated by Paris-based the Community, will showcase the extensive queer art collection of the Tom of Finland Foundation during New York City’s Pride celebrations.
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