Tampere museums announce their programme for 2026
On Tuesday 4.11., Tampere Museums published the 2026 exhibition programme at Museum Milavida. The diverse exhibition year will bring the football World Cup to Tampere, spotlight men's fashion and present both classics and new names in art.
An exhibition on the football World Cup through the ages will open at Vapriikki in April, while Museum Milavida will showcase men’s fashion from the end of February. The Postal Museum will open the Post and bits exhibition in May and Erik Bruun’s Birds in February. Encore! – Tampere Art Museum’s last exhibition on Puutarhakatu before renovation – will showcase beloved classics, big names and contemporary art gems from the museum’s own collections. The Moomin Museum’s temporary exhibition, opening in autumn, delves into Moomin dolls and the philosophy behind their collection. The spring exhibition at the Sara Hildén Art Museum will be an extensive survey of the work of Finnish printmaking master Pentti Kaskipuro. The summer exhibition Freshly Painted presents young painting.
Men’s fashion and football in the history museums
In February 2026, the Museum Milavida will respond to the wishes of its customers by putting men in the spotlight with the exhibition Man - Lad, Dandy,Gentleman. In Milavida, the man will be dressed in the uniform of his status, in boots with eyebrows, in sweatpants with freedom of movement, and in bonjour and lunch suits that have disappeared from the modern man’s wardrobe.
The Museum Centre Vapriikki in Tampere will participate in the 2026 Football World Cup. Opening in April, the Football World Cup Through the Ages exhibition will showcase the stars, events and stories from the history of the men’s and women’s World Cups. Opening in June, Past World – Tampere in the early 20th century takes you on a journey to a time when the modern world was just beginning to change the urban landscape. In the autumn, you can play in the completely renovated Museum of Games. In May, the Postal Museum will open a new long-term exhibition at Vapriikki, Post and bits, which tells the story of communicating Finns and the Post Office. The Postal Museum will also highlight sketches of bird-themed stamps designed by graphic artist Erik Bruun to mark the 100th anniversary of his birth in February.
Classics and contemporary art at Tampere Art Museum before renovation
The long-awaited renovation of Tampere Art Museum and the construction of the new main building will start in summer 2026. Until then, a whole-house Encore! exhibition will bring beloved classics, big names and contemporary art gems from the museum’s own collections. Featuring works by nearly 90 artists from the 1810s to the 2020s, from Hjalmar Munsterhjelm to Kim Simonsson. The spring will culminate in a rare exhibition of Helene Schjerfbeck, five works on loan from the Nordea Art Foundation. The theme of this summer’s Biennale of the Arts ’26 will be “Together”, approached from different angles by the artists. The Biennale will be shown in the interim space and the artists will be announced on 6.3.26. The most exciting moment of the year will be on 23.1.26, when the next Young Artist of the Year will be announced. The awards exhibition will be held at the end of 2026.
Moomin dolls as a collector’s item
The Moomin Museum Observatory’s next temporary exhibition, Moomin Moomin Man, will explore why almost every Finn has a Moomin doll in their cupboard. Moomin dolls symbolise the Moomin way of life – humane values, tolerance, warmth and joie de vivre – with which people want to identify. The exhibition explores Moomin dolls as iconic and super-popular collectibles, the philosophy, sociology and cultural history of collecting.
Sara Hildén Art Museum presents a master of Finnish printmaking and young painting
An extensive exhibition by graphic artist Pentti Kaskipuro offers a unique overview of the work of the Finnish master of graphic art from the 1950s to the 2000s. Pentti Kaskipuro (1930-2010) was a pioneer of Finnish printmaking and a major influence both as a self-taught artist and as a respected teacher, also known as Master K. He is one of the most internationally renowned Finnish printmakers and was awarded in many international exhibitions of graphic art.
The group exhibition Freshly Painted, featuring young painters, invites mainly visual artists living and working in Finland whose main technique is painting. All invited participants will be represented by a body of work proposed by themselves. The exhibition will feature a number of newly painted, never-before-seen works, which have been created into hanging ensembles through thematic content.
Exhibitions at Tampere Museums 2026:
Museum Milavida: 27.2.2026-21.3.2027 Man – lad, dandy, gentleman
Vapriikki: 13.2.-12.4.2026 Nature Photos of the Year 2025 16.4.2026-1.11.2026 Football World Cup through the ages 4.6.2026-31.1.2027 A World Bygone – Tampere In The Early 20th Century10.10- The refurbished Finnish Museum of Games
Postal Museum:6.2.-16.8.2026 Erik Bruun’s birds8.5.2026- Post and bits
Tampere Art Museum:7.2.-14.6.2026 Encore! Classics and contemporary art from the collections19.5.-14.6.2026 Schjerfbeck X Nordea Art Foundation12.6.-16.8.2026 Art Community ´26 – Together (Finlayson area, Haihara Art Centre and urban area)30.10.2026-10.1.2027 Young Artist of the Year 2026 (Kutomosali, Finlayson area)
Moomin Museum:25.9.2026–19.9.2027 Muumimukimania
Sara Hildén Art Museum:10.1.-19.4.2026 Pentti Kaskipuro14.5.-30.8.2026. Freshly Painted