The Office of the President of the Republic of Finland and the Alfred Kordelin Foundation are organising a sculpture exhibition at Kultaranta’s park in Naantali, Finland, from 30 May to 31 August 2025. The theme of the exhibition is ‘Layers’ and it features works by seven contemporary sculptors who work with wood and stone in particular. The exhibition is open to visitors during guided tours and open hours.
The historic Kultaranta formal garden, designed as a complete work of art, will provide a unique setting for Finnish contemporary art this summer. The Layers exhibition features works by seven contemporary sculptors fascinated by the use of traditional, natural materials in art. Visual artists Timo Hannunen, Emma Jääskeläinen, Antero Koskinen and Matti Peltokangas utilise different types of stone in their works. Mia Hamari, Pasi Karjula and Hannu Riikonen find wood a more natural material for them to work with.
Both wood and stone sculpting have a long tradition of being used for a variety of purposes, and visual art is one layer of that history. Sculpting typically refers to the removal of excess material from a raw piece – a block of stone or a block of wood – but in contemporary sculpture it can also mean building, adding material, and combining pieces of wood or stone with other materials. The exhibition offers viewers insightful, surprising and expressive insight into wood and stone as building materials for art.
The exhibition is curated by MA Tapani Pennanen.
You can read more about the artists featured this summer from Alfred Kordelin Foundation’s website.
Thirteenth joint sculpture exhibition
The Office of the President of the Republic of Finland and the Alfred Kordelin Foundation have organised sculpture exhibitions at Kultaranta since 2011. This summer’s collection is linked to the nature-themed exhibitions of 2021 and 2022, which explored animal imagery and organic shapes of plants. In 2023 and 2024, no exhibitions were held at Kultaranta due to extensive renovations of the villa and other buildings and green spaces.
Kultaranta was originally built in 1913–1916 as a summer residence for businessman and agricultural counsellor Alfred Kordelin (1868–1917). The summery sculpture exhibition pays homage to its builder’s original idea of the villa as a home for art collections and as a local museum open to the public. Kordelin himself was unable to realise his dream due to his sudden death.
Visitors have free access to the Kultaranta garden and sculpture exhibition on Fridays from 18–20. In addition, Naantalin Matkailu will organise guided tours in the garden for a fee from 3 June onwards. The sculpture exhibition is open until 31 August. Please check daily round times and availability on the Visit Naantali website.
READ MORE: THE EXHIBITION’S WEBSITE
More information
Anna Chydenius
Communications Specialist
Alfred Kordelin Foundation
tel. 050 577 6552
anna.chydenius@kordelin.fi