Finnish contemporary illustration and collection highlights at Tikanoja Art Museum

The exhibition Serene Moments and Vibrant Colours, opening on the first floor of the Tikanoja Art Museum, offers a glimpse into the collection of Vaasa-based merchant and art patron Frithjof Tikanoja (1877–1964), consisting of more than a thousand artworks, books, and a range of antiques.

Literature, music and theatre had been part of Tikanoja’s life since his youth. His interest in the visual arts was sparked in the 1910s, and in the 1920s he purchased a number of works by international modernists, which took the value of the collection to a new level. In addition to works representing Finnish and earlier international art, the collection now included pioneering pieces by Henri Matisse, Paul Gauguin and Maurice de Vlaminck. These works are also featured in the new exhibition.

Among the Finnish artists represented in the collection, the exhibition also includes pieces by Tyko Sallinen, William Lönnberg, Ilmari Vuori, Arvi Mäenpää and Eemu Myntti, as well as a selection of objects once owned by Frithjof Tikanoja. Serene Moments and Vibrant Colours will be on display at the Tikanoja Art Museum from 27 September 2025 until further notice.

Patron and lover of art

Tikanoja’s marriage to Ruusa Myntti led to lasting connections within the visual arts community. Ruusa’s brother, the painter Eemu Myntti, introduced Tikanoja to his artist friends, and the Tikanoja family circle also included other artists: Ruusa’s sister Lyyli Myntti and her husband, the architect Matti Visanti.

Tikanoja also supported contemporary artists, with whom he had close connections through his family. Thanks to financial support from Frithjof Tikanoja, Eemu Myntti spent extended periods in southern France, painting landscapes and portraits.

Life among art

The Tikanoja family home was located in the centre of Vaasa, but they spent their summers at their seaside villa, where Tikanoja tended to his large garden. In the villa’s grounds, visitors were greeted by Tikanoja’s first major art acquisition. Elias Ilkka’s sculpture The Ogre and the Maiden takes its inspiration from Aleksis Kivi’s seminal novel Seven Brothers. Tikanoja donated the sculpture to the City of Vaasa in 1959, and it currently stands in Tiklaspuisto Park in Vöyrinkaupunki.

In 1951, Tikanoja gifted his collection to the City of Vaasa, and the Tikanoja Art Museum opened that same year. The Tikanoja Art Museum is not a traditional home museum, but a place where anyone can satisfy their thirst for beauty. During the summer of 2025, the historic building underwent extensive façade and roof renovations, along with refurbishments of the interior spaces.

I am not afraid explores the worlds of children and young people through illustrative art

I am not afraid – Finnish contemporary illustrators, opening at the Tikanoja Art Museum, showcases six accomplished artists. The exhibition features well-known, award-winning children’s book illustrators:  Satu Kettunen (b. 1979) and Jenny Lucander (b. 1975), as well as Finland’s youngest female recipient of the State Award, social critic and comic artist Riina Tanskanen (b. 1998). The exhibition also presents visual artist Juliana Hyrri (b. 1989), working in comics and animation, and illustrator and graphic designer Saara Obele (b. 1984) as well as an animation by visual artist Janna Lindfors (b. 1998) as an immersive tent installation.

The exhibition explores growing up and the courage to face one’s fears and invites visitors to explore the worlds of children and young people through illustration. The works draw on everyday life and elements of the fantastical, as well as on contemporary social themes such as bullying, gender diversity, and death, which has become increasingly present due to the impact of wars.

The many faces of illustration

Illustrator and children’s author Satu Kettunen combines collage techniques, watercolour, drawing, and paper cuttings digitally. Her picture book Mörköjuhlat (Monster Party, 2019), featured in the exhibition, explores a child’s fears through magical, multilayered illustrations. Illustrator and graphic designer Jenny Lucander works with pencil, gouache, and watercolour and oil-based paints, completing her images digitally as collage-like compositions. Her book Fakta om pappor (Facts about Dads, 2021) examines the role of fatherhood.

Visual artist, illustrator, and award-winning comic artist Juliana Hyrri works in painting, contemporary comics, and spatial installations. Her work Lellikki (The Favourite) depicts childhood, loneliness, and bullying with tones of irony and hope. Visual and comic artist Riina Tanskanen is best known for her Tympeät tytöt (Grumpy girls) project, which addresses inequality, sexism, and girl culture, drawing on the tradition of feminist DIY comics.

Illustrator and pattern designer Saara Obele employs a digital, painterly style. She is the illustrator of Poika ja hame (Boy and Skirt, 2021), by Vaasa-born Jani Toivola. The book’s colours emphasise the story’s themes of courage and self-acceptance. Visual artist Janna Lindfors combines animation, installation, and drawing. The exhibition features Illan tullen (As evening falls, 2022/2025), an animation made from charcoal drawings, which explores the death of an animal and the emotional bonds tied to memories, presented in a tent installation.

The extensive exhibition will be on view from 27 September 2025 to 23 May 2026 across two floors of Tikanoja Art Museum, showcasing the diversity of illustration art, from drawings and collage techniques to digital works, animations, and installations. The exhibition is produced by Vaasa Museums  and curated by Curator Noora Lehtovuori. The project has received support from the Finnish Heritage Agency and the Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland.

Monster workshops as part of the exhibition programme

The exhibition’s target audience is catered for with a broad range of additional programme. In May 2025, Satu Kettunen led Monster workshops, connected to her book Mörköjuhlat, in Vaasa’s preschools. The exhibition space features a three-dimensional installation that includes monster figures created by children. Linguistic accessibility has also been enhanced in connection with the exhibition’s artworks. With the supplementary material produced for the exhibition, we offer secondary school students an opportunity to explore the comic-making process in more depth through the works of Juliana Hyrri and Riina Tanskanen.

In connection with the exhibition, a Monster workshop for preschool children will also be organised on 25 October, where illustrator Satu Kettunen will guide the children in working with themes of fear and imagination. In addition, an artist meeting with Jenny Lucander will be held in Swedish on Saturday, 18 October.