Untamed Art

In May, the National Museum will open an extensive exhibition of outsider art – Untamed Art. The outsider artists, who have become a prominent part of the international art scene, do not conform to the norms of art, but quite literally create art that is rather untamed, wild and, above all, born out of the imagination of its creator.

Outsider art has not escaped the appreciation of the art scene or the interest of a larger audience. The energy and creative potential of the artwork has always inspired artist contemporaries such as Picasso. In recent decades, outsider art has been prominently displayed at major art biennials such as the Venice Biennale.

The artists in the exhibition include the internationally acclaimed Franjo Klopotan, Madge Gill, Natalie Schmidtova and Tyyne Esko.

The exhibition is curated by Tuula Karjalainen, an art historian and non-fiction writer, and Liisa Heikkilä-Palo, an editor, art curator and collector of outsider art.

The exhibition includes loaned exhibition pieces from private collections and artists, the collections of the Saarijärvi Museum and two international collections of the K.H.Renlund Museum.