Kenya Revisited
Gallen-Kallela Museum, Espoo
- 11.3.2023–28.1.2024
Kenya Revisited presents a comprehensive selection of the paintings Akseli Gallen-Kallela created during his stay in East Africa, together with ethnographic and zoological materials he collected there.
Akseli Gallen-Kallela’s trip to Africa from 1909–1910 is a well-known and fascinating period in his life. Settling in the area around Nairobi, now the capital of Kenya, Gallen-Kallela recorded views of the life and landscapes of what was then British East Africa. The themes and collections related to the journey have now been examined for the first time, with Kenyan actors both in Finland and Kenya!
The themes of the exhibition were examined in joint workshops, covering colonialism, hunting, Kenyan history and the display materials: art and object collections. Kenya Revisited features a large selection of Gallen-Kallela’s paintings and ethnographic and zoological materials collected by him. The exhibition is complemented by background information and experiences of the objects gathered from the Kenyan community.
Gallen-Kallela saw East Africa as a pristine paradise where he could realise his dreams. In Afrikka-kirja (Africa Book), his memoirs of the journey, he remarks, …when I arrived, time stood still. Like an ever-evolving Fata Morgana, the visions around us change; everything is just days and nights that merge with the sun, the moon and the stars, in an air so gentle that one forgets one’s own existence.
The exhibition texts are available in Finnish, Swedish, English and Swahili.
The exhibition has received support from Kone Foundation and the City of Espoo.
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Gallen-Kallela Museum
Gallen-Kallelan tie 27, 02600 Espoo
010 4068840
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Päämäärä:
Gallen-Kallela Museum, Gallen-Kallelan tie 27, 02600 Espoo
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Admission fees
12/7/5/0 €
Payment methods
Käteinen, pankkikortti, Museokortti, Kaikukortti, virikesetelit: Smartum, Edenred, Epassi
Opening hours
| Mon | Closed |
| Tue | 11:00-16:00 |
| Wed | 11:00-16:00 |
| Thu | 11:00-16:00 |
| Fri | 11:00-16:00 |
| Sat | 11:00-16:00 |
| Sun | 11:00-17:00 |
Museum is closed on Mondays and opening times are Tue - Sat 11-16, Su 11-17. Closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day 24.-25.12. Closed on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day 31.12.-1.1. Closed on Midsummer´s eve.