{"id":2056,"date":"2026-01-28T13:09:03","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T11:09:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/turunlinna.fi\/wamold\/?post_type=ajankohtaista&p=2056"},"modified":"2026-02-03T16:20:56","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T14:20:56","slug":"wams-opening-exhibitions-present-international-contemporary-art-and-highlights-from-the-city-art-collection","status":"publish","type":"ajankohtaista","link":"https:\/\/turunlinna.fi\/wamold\/en\/news\/wams-opening-exhibitions-present-international-contemporary-art-and-highlights-from-the-city-art-collection\/","title":{"rendered":"Following landmark renovation, WAM unveils new exhibitions of international contemporary art"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \n \"WAMin\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n
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Home<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p> <\/div>\n <\/div> \n \n

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Following landmark renovation, WAM unveils new exhibitions of international contemporary art<\/h1>\n\n \n
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28.01.2026<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n \n <\/div>\n \n\n\n

WAM Turku City Art Museum (WAM) will open to the public following an extensive renovation. The opening programme brings together international media art, classic sculptures by W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltonen and the renewed WAMx platform, which introduces a new space for experimentation and encounter within the museum. The exhibitions will open on 31 October 2026.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Originally completed in 1967 by renowned architects Matti and Irma Aaltonen<\/strong>, WAM is an iconic modernist landmark and widely regarded as one of Finland\u2019s architectural gems. Its \u20ac17 million renovation strengthens its role as a pivotal hub for art in the country, modernising the building to support immersive exhibitions while expanding the museum and restoring key spaces to their original form. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The museum\u2019s reopening in October is set to coincide with the launch of Turku Music Centre Fuuga in autumn 2026, a new world\u2011class music venue located beside the museum on the banks of the River Aura.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sabrina Ratt\u00e9\u2019s solo exhibition Web of Wyrd will mark the opening of WAM\u2019s new exhibition space<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Web of Wyrd<\/em>, the first solo exhibition in the Nordic countries by Canadian media artist Sabrina Ratt\u00e9<\/strong> (b. 1982), will inaugurate a new exhibition space on the museum\u2019s ground floor. Based in Montreal, Ratt\u00e9 is known for her visually rich works combining 3D animation, analog video, print, and installation. At WAM, she will create a mystical environment where the boundaries between the space and the artwork are deliberately blurred.<\/p>\n

The exhibition presents eight works created in the 2020s, shown as large-scale projections and image prints. Influenced by science fiction, the works reflect the artist\u2019s interest in spirituality and animism.<\/p>\n

As part of the opening programme, Ratt\u00e9\u2019s most recent work, Archipels<\/em>, will be projected onto the museum\u2019s fa\u00e7ade. A new museum-produced publication on the artist\u2019s work will be released to coincide with the exhibition. The exhibition is curated by Anna Per\u00e4l\u00e4<\/strong> of WAM.<\/p>\n

Photo of the artist: Tristan Khadka.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Collection exhibition brings W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltonen\u2019s works into long-term display<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Covering the period from the museum\u2019s construction in the 1960s to the present day, the collection exhibition Primal Force \u2013 Works from the Turku City Art Collection<\/em> brings together sculptures by W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltonen<\/strong> alongside other key works from the collection.<\/p>\n

The exhibition takes its title from Aaltonen\u2019s miniature sculpture Primal Force<\/em> (1915), which depicts a forcefully advancing human figure toppling classical marble columns. The work reflects Aaltonen\u2019s view of art as a means of renewal and a challenge to tradition. Visitors can also explore the artist\u2019s life and work through a new audio play produced\u00a0 specifically for the exhibition.<\/p>\n

The exhibition also includes recent acquisitions to the collection, such as works by Saara Ekstr\u00f6m <\/strong>and Tommi Toija<\/strong>. It is curated by Eveliina Tammi<\/strong> and Riina Tiainen<\/strong> of WAM Turku City Art Museum.<\/p>\n

W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltonen and Turku<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo: W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltonen: Primal Force, 1915. Turku City Art Collection.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Renewed WAMx Showcases Art\u2019s Capacity for Dialogue and Change<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Opening in the museum\u2019s studio space, WAMx introduces a flexible, artist-led programme focused on collaboration and exchange. Its activities bring together different artistic disciplines and practitioners, emphasising art\u2019s potential to engage with and influence society.<\/p>\n

WAMx will open with Notes on the State of the World, a body of work by serial and photographic artist Kati Rapia and visual artist Ilona Valkonen. Working in collaboration with young people, the artists will collect marine litter and lead photography workshops along the Baltic Sea, a region under significant environmental pressure.<\/p>\n

During the summer of 2026, Rapia and Valkonen will conduct workshops with local youth in the Turku archipelago. These activities will be complemented by dancers from the Regional Dance Centre of Western Finland, who have participated in the youth workshops.<\/p>\n

Image: Kati Rapia and Ilona Valkonen: Berta with Bengt wearing Note 6, Loviisa, 2021.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

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The Artists<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n
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Sabrina Ratt\u00e9 is a media artist based in Montreal. Ratt\u00e9’s works have been seen at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Fotografiska Shanghai and the Museum of the Moving Image in New York.
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\r\nKati Rapia is a visual artist known for her comics, collages and photographs, which she has presented in exhibitions, books and events. Rapia was awarded the State Prize for Comics in 2018.
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\r\nIlona Valkonen is a visual artist who works with new forms of painting, living monuments and the transforming performance concept Vieno Motors. Valkonen has been performing Vieno Motors performances since 2014. Vieno Motors could be described as a changing improvisation band, where instead of music, the spotlight is on the handwritings of visually working artists. <\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Main image: Sabrina Ratt\u00e9: Pharmakon: Nightshade, 2025 (still). Interactive installation.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WAM Turku City Art Museum (WAM) will open to the public following an extensive renovation. The opening programme brings together international media art, classic sculptures by W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltonen and the renewed WAMx platform, which introduces a new space for experimentation and encounter within the museum. The exhibitions will open on 31 October 2026. Originally completed..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":2054,"template":"","format":"standard","class_list":["post-2056","ajankohtaista","type-ajankohtaista","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFollowing landmark renovation, WAM unveils new exhibitions of international contemporary art - WAM<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"WAMin avajaisohjelmassa yhdistyy kansainv\u00e4linen mediataide, W\u00e4in\u00f6 Aaltosen klassikkoveistokset sek\u00e4 WAMx.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/turunlinna.fi\/wamold\/en\/news\/wams-opening-exhibitions-present-international-contemporary-art-and-highlights-from-the-city-art-collection\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Following landmark renovation, WAM unveils new exhibitions of international contemporary art - 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