From Wonder to Wonder - Akseli Gallen-Kallela as a Collector

31.10.2026-28.2.2027

The exhibition opens Akseli Gallen-Kallela's personal collection: objects gathered from his travels, cultural-historical treasures cherished by his family, and paintings in which influences from different cultures are clearly visible. The collection is complemented by artworks and art-industry products from the same travel destinations.

The collecting passion traces back to the artist's youth. Japanese objects acquired from Paris in the 1880s tell of a flâneur who followed his era, thriving in the rhythm of great cities yet yearning for the silence of forest solitude. The exhibition also explores the collection's distinctive pieces: masks that conceal, reveal, and tell stories. The avant-garde and primitivism interest at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries brought masks into artists' focus, and Gallen-Kallela's collection includes numerous masks acquired during his travels. Mask motifs recur in his own artistic work as well.

Egyptian culture captivated theosophists, scholars, and artists who saw the country as a source of secret knowledge. Gallen-Kallela's family spent four weeks in Egypt on their return journey from Africa - a stop originally intended for acclimatization, but which also included visits to museums and local sights. The collection had already grown significantly during the nearly two-year journey through East Africa.