The exhibition programme 2026 of Pori Art Museum

In spring 2026, the Contra Conservatio group exhibition opening at the Art Museum Hall will explore themes of destruction and renewal by examining the concepts of preservation, restoration, and, on the other hand, change, metamorphosis, and entropy.

At the heart of the exhibition are the remains of the ceiling fresco painted by Akseli Gallen-Kallela for the Juselius Mausoleum, which were saved from the fire that destroyed the building in 1931. International and local contemporary artists bring their perspectives to the themes of the exhibition through both existing works and works created specifically for the exhibition.

In addition to Gallen-Kallela, the other artists featured in the exhibition are Cyprien Gaillard, Markus Luiro, Iida Nikitin, Kosti S. Ruohomaa, and Veronica Ryan. The exhibition has been curated by Arttu Merimaa, chief curator of the exhibition services in Pori Art Museum.

In autumn 2026, the Pori Art Museum will host a major exhibition by British-Kenyan (Maasai Kikuyu) artist Grace Ndiritu, which will be divided between the museum's Hall and all of the Wing's exhibition spaces. Ndiritu's exhibition PoriPostModern includes the artist's new moving image work The Rehearsals, in which the Pori Art Museum is acting as co-producer. Ndiritu's practice examines the transformative possibilities of art on both a social and spiritual level.

The exhibition in the Hall of the art museum is based on Ndiritu's work The Temple, which is an installation that functions as modernist exhibition architecture and a spiritual communal space. The version to be built at the Pori Art Museum will include not only Ndiritu's own works of art, but also a selection of works from the museum's collection representing postmodern stylistic trends, resembling a kind of indoor sculpture park.

Pori Art Museum exhibitions 2026:

28.3.-30.8.2026, Contra Conservatio, group exhibition, Hall
28.3.-30.8.2026, De Se -asenne, group exhibition, Wing
28.3.-30.8.2026, Maire Gullichsen and the Turning Points of Modernism, Wing

26.9.2026 – 28.2.2027, Grace Ndiritu: PoriPostModern, Hall, Wing

Poriginal:
09.01. – 22.02.2026, Inari Sandell
27.02 . -19.04.2026, Zagros Manuchar
24.04. – 18.06.2026, Ritva ja Lumi Tuomi
26.06. – 16.08.2026, Fanny Varjo
21.08. – 18.10.2026, Juliana Hyrri
23.10.2026-03.01.2027 Karl Ketamo

Changes to the program and schedule are possible.