Moomin creator Tove Jansson began searching for a home for her extensive archive in the mid-1980s. But museums in her native Helsinki were not interested in the work of a children’s illustrator.
Around the same time, Jansson’s partner, the graphic artist Tuulikki Pietilä, was holding an exhibition at Tampere Art Museum. She too was looking to place her archive in an institution, and when the museum discovered this it welcomed both collections with open arms.
Helsinki’s loss was most certainly Tampere’s gain. The collection was housed in Tampere City Library for many years, but in July 2017 it moved to a new Moomin Museum in Tampere Hall, the largest cultural centre in Scandinavia, which offers 1,000 sq m of display space.
The museum presents an immersive experience that brings alive the wit, wisdom and charm of Jansson’s stories. It follows the history of the Moomin characters from their first appearance in a book called the Great Flood to their disappearance in the final book, Moominvalley in November. Alongside original illustrations and charming figures and tableaux created by Jansson and Pietilä are interactive exhibits such as the Hobgoblin’s Hat, which brings about magical transformations, and a touch-controlled Hattifattener animation.
Panels, printed guides and browsable screens all deliver information effectively to visitors. There is a free app that not only offers a conventional audioguide, but also a dramatised version.
Tania Myllyharju has been the director of Tampere Art Museum and the Moomin collection since 2008, and has overseen the latter’s move to its new dedicated space.
Your displays are experimental and multisensory. What made you choose that approach?
Taina Myllyharju: Tove Jansson’s wish, 30 years ago, was to create a different kind of museum – a fantasy world where you could forget the real world. We’ve tried to follow her desire. Now we also have technology that Jansson could never have dreamed of. At first the architect and lead designers had to read all the books and see the original works of art so they could get an idea of where to start. We also commissioned artists including Hanna Vihriälä and Jarno Vesala to create items such as the Comet and the Magician’s Hat. Our visitors have been overwhelmed. Sophia, Jansson’s niece, and Roleff Kråkström, the managing director of the Moomin Company, have visited too.
How did you go about the relocation?
The new Moomin Museum has been set up in an existing building, but the construction process was not easy. The most difficult part was to create a proper museum climate that could house delicate works. The construction cost about €2.6m and the exhibition planning and installation cost about €1m.
Can you tell me about the artist commissions?
The artist Hanna Vihriälä made the Comet, which is a spectacular sculpture consisting of 200,000 acrylic baubles suspended on clear wires, installed inside the museum. We already knew what she was able to do because she had made a couple of things with the same technique. We just showed her the place and gave her a budget and that was it. For the Magician’s Hat by Jarno Vesala, we wanted something weird and he made it happen. The artwork is a large replica of the magical hat that featured in Finn Family Moomintroll, and it can be climbed into by visitors. In the future we might commission more artists to respond to Moomin-based themes too.
Has the response to the exhibits varied according to the age of visitors?
Each visitor is interested in different things. The children love the animations and Taina Pailos’s underfloor tableaux, while adults are more keen on the original illustrations. But everyone goes inside the Magician’s Hat.
What are the highlights of the collection?
Jansson’s first illustrations and the Black Moomin, which is the first Moomin she ever drew. The big Moomin house is also popular. It is a five-story replica of the house made by Jansson, Pietilä and their friend Pentti Eistola, complete with figures and detailed miniature furnishings. The house needed conservation work before it was displayed. All the tableaux required careful cleaning, which was done by four art conservators who specialise in sculptures and miniatures. Lots of repairs and new parts were needed as well.
What are your plans for the exhibition programme?
The current exhibition, Tove Jansson and the Moomins, runs until June 2018. In the future we will have exhibitions based on the rest of the collection, which consists of about 2,000 original works by Jansson and other internationally renowned illustrative artists.
Why did you decide to have a reading room in the museum?
The idea came from the mayor of Tampere, Anna-Kaisa Ikonen, and we took it on board with pleasure. Almost every visitor goes into it , and it is used by both the adults and children who visit us.
What has the response of the local community in Tampere been?
We have had a lot of local visitors. The schools started their autumn term in mid-August here in Finland and we expect lots of young people from the local schools and kindergartens over winter too.
How important is the museum to Tampere?
It has made the city famous – the Moomin Museum is the biggest brand in Tampere at the moment. It attracts lots of visitors and tourists to the town and that means money too.
The Moomins have a huge global following. Where are your visitors from?
We have about 1,000 visitors every day and a third of them are from abroad. Most of those are from Japan but also from Korea, China, the UK, Germany and Sweden.
Cath Pound is a freelance writer.
www.muumimuseo.fi/en
Exhibition design Neo Ark
Lighting, installation, display cases Neo Ark
Sound design and installation Valinor
AV engineering Granlund Consulting
Animations and Magician’s Hat MiKaKo Illustration; Jarno Vesala; OiOi Collective; Parad
Graphic design Dog Design
Interpretation Tarinakone
Info-panels and tablets OiOi Collective
Mobile guide Citynomadi
Admission Adults €12, children €6
Around the same time, Jansson’s partner, the graphic artist Tuulikki Pietilä, was holding an exhibition at Tampere Art Museum. She too was looking to place her archive in an institution, and when the museum discovered this it welcomed both collections with open arms.
Helsinki’s loss was most certainly Tampere’s gain. The collection was housed in Tampere City Library for many years, but in July 2017 it moved to a new Moomin Museum in Tampere Hall, the largest cultural centre in Scandinavia, which offers 1,000 sq m of display space.
The museum presents an immersive experience that brings alive the wit, wisdom and charm of Jansson’s stories. It follows the history of the Moomin characters from their first appearance in a book called the Great Flood to their disappearance in the final book, Moominvalley in November. Alongside original illustrations and charming figures and tableaux created by Jansson and Pietilä are interactive exhibits such as the Hobgoblin’s Hat, which brings about magical transformations, and a touch-controlled Hattifattener animation.
Panels, printed guides and browsable screens all deliver information effectively to visitors. There is a free app that not only offers a conventional audioguide, but also a dramatised version.
Tania Myllyharju has been the director of Tampere Art Museum and the Moomin collection since 2008, and has overseen the latter’s move to its new dedicated space.
Your displays are experimental and multisensory. What made you choose that approach?
Taina Myllyharju: Tove Jansson’s wish, 30 years ago, was to create a different kind of museum – a fantasy world where you could forget the real world. We’ve tried to follow her desire. Now we also have technology that Jansson could never have dreamed of. At first the architect and lead designers had to read all the books and see the original works of art so they could get an idea of where to start. We also commissioned artists including Hanna Vihriälä and Jarno Vesala to create items such as the Comet and the Magician’s Hat. Our visitors have been overwhelmed. Sophia, Jansson’s niece, and Roleff Kråkström, the managing director of the Moomin Company, have visited too.
How did you go about the relocation?
The new Moomin Museum has been set up in an existing building, but the construction process was not easy. The most difficult part was to create a proper museum climate that could house delicate works. The construction cost about €2.6m and the exhibition planning and installation cost about €1m.
Can you tell me about the artist commissions?
The artist Hanna Vihriälä made the Comet, which is a spectacular sculpture consisting of 200,000 acrylic baubles suspended on clear wires, installed inside the museum. We already knew what she was able to do because she had made a couple of things with the same technique. We just showed her the place and gave her a budget and that was it. For the Magician’s Hat by Jarno Vesala, we wanted something weird and he made it happen. The artwork is a large replica of the magical hat that featured in Finn Family Moomintroll, and it can be climbed into by visitors. In the future we might commission more artists to respond to Moomin-based themes too.
Has the response to the exhibits varied according to the age of visitors?
Each visitor is interested in different things. The children love the animations and Taina Pailos’s underfloor tableaux, while adults are more keen on the original illustrations. But everyone goes inside the Magician’s Hat.
What are the highlights of the collection?
Jansson’s first illustrations and the Black Moomin, which is the first Moomin she ever drew. The big Moomin house is also popular. It is a five-story replica of the house made by Jansson, Pietilä and their friend Pentti Eistola, complete with figures and detailed miniature furnishings. The house needed conservation work before it was displayed. All the tableaux required careful cleaning, which was done by four art conservators who specialise in sculptures and miniatures. Lots of repairs and new parts were needed as well.
What are your plans for the exhibition programme?
The current exhibition, Tove Jansson and the Moomins, runs until June 2018. In the future we will have exhibitions based on the rest of the collection, which consists of about 2,000 original works by Jansson and other internationally renowned illustrative artists.
Why did you decide to have a reading room in the museum?
The idea came from the mayor of Tampere, Anna-Kaisa Ikonen, and we took it on board with pleasure. Almost every visitor goes into it , and it is used by both the adults and children who visit us.
What has the response of the local community in Tampere been?
We have had a lot of local visitors. The schools started their autumn term in mid-August here in Finland and we expect lots of young people from the local schools and kindergartens over winter too.
How important is the museum to Tampere?
It has made the city famous – the Moomin Museum is the biggest brand in Tampere at the moment. It attracts lots of visitors and tourists to the town and that means money too.
The Moomins have a huge global following. Where are your visitors from?
We have about 1,000 visitors every day and a third of them are from abroad. Most of those are from Japan but also from Korea, China, the UK, Germany and Sweden.
Cath Pound is a freelance writer.
www.muumimuseo.fi/en
Project data
Cost €2.6m (£2.3m)Exhibition design Neo Ark
Lighting, installation, display cases Neo Ark
Sound design and installation Valinor
AV engineering Granlund Consulting
Animations and Magician’s Hat MiKaKo Illustration; Jarno Vesala; OiOi Collective; Parad
Graphic design Dog Design
Interpretation Tarinakone
Info-panels and tablets OiOi Collective
Mobile guide Citynomadi
Admission Adults €12, children €6