Tell Me About the Beginning of Time -guided tour

Explore the exhibitions at Kunsthalle Seinäjoki alongside experts from various fields. During these interactive guided tours, the Kunsthalle’s guide provides an overview of the exhibition, while visiting experts offer their own perspectives. The discussion also includes time for audience comments and questions.

The Tell Me About the Beginning of Time guided tour explores The Contamination of Time exhibition at Kunsthalle Seinäjoki with Niko Putkinen. Niko Putkinen is a senior researcher at the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK). Putkinen’s research focuses on the impact of present-day and past climate change on glacial dynamics, which means the movement of glaciers. What thoughts does The Contamination of Time exhibition evoke in the researcher? The works in the exhibition invite us to reflect on time and our influence over it. The works demonstrate how the distant past and future subtly influence our everyday lives. How does studying deep time help us understand our present and our hopes for the future?

Niko Putkinen

Niko Putkinen is a Senior Scientist at the Geological Survey of Finland. After graduating from the University of Oulu, he spent a postdoc year in the Planet Earth Lab at UTSC on ice streaming over soft and hard beds across the Laurentide ice sheet. His current interests are in the modern and past climate variations controlling glacier operation. Understanding of past glacial environments and processes has a direct linkage to regional-scale 3D mapping and aquifer systems characterization, as well as the vast field of urban geology in glaciated regions. Other interests focus on the methodological development of mapping that utilizes new technology, geo-data management, and models that improve the interoperability of remote sensing, geophysical, and geological models. Currently, Niko is a Glacial Geology Docent at the University of Helsinki and works intensively as a chief scientist and a project leader in numerous projects, including the Scandinavian largest groundwater exploration project.

The event is funded by Finnish Cultural Foundation