Franjo Klopotan Kukko ja perhosia kavelylla kevaalla 1971 Kuva Zimmer kokoelma K H Renlundin museo

CLOSED: Untamed Art

The National Museum displays an extensive exhibition of outsider art – Untamed Art until Sept. 24th, 2023. The outsider artists, who have become a prominent part of the international art scene, do not conform to the norms of art, but quite literally create art that is rather untamed, wild and, above all, born out of the imagination of its creator.

Outsider art has not escaped the appreciation of the art scene or the interest of a larger audience. The energy and creative potential of the artwork has always inspired artist contemporaries such as Picasso. In recent decades, outsider art has been prominently displayed at major art biennials such as the Venice Biennale.

The artists in the exhibition include the internationally acclaimed Franjo Klopotan, Madge Gill, Natalie Schmidtova and Tyyne Esko.

The exhibition is curated by Tuula Karjalainen, an art historian and non-fiction writer, and Liisa Heikkilä-Palo, an editor, art curator and collector of outsider art.

The exhibition includes loaned exhibition pieces from private collections and artists, the collections of the Saarijärvi Museum and two international collections of the K.H.Renlund Museum.

Untamed Art, which is expected to be the last exhibition at the National Museum before the start of the museum’s expansion and renovation project, will be open at the National Museum of Finland from 5 May to 24 September 2023.

You can find out more about the exhibition’s themes and artists on the guided tours held in the exhibition space:

  • 14.5. at 14
  • 11.6. at 14
  • 9.7. at 14
  • 13.8. at 14

Ivan Rabuzin, White Flower, 1971. Photo: Werner Zimmer.

Three-Headed Cock in a Winter Landscape. Photo: Werner Zimmer.

Isabel de Jesus, Serpent, 1973. Photo: Werner Zimmer.

Tyyne Esko, Medal Ceremony, 1990 - 1991. Photo: The Saarijärvi Museum / Janne Timperi.

Natalie Schmidtova, Village in Peru, 1975. Photo: Werner Zimmer.

Jussi Tukiainen, The Flying Dutchman 2. Photo: Ville Räty.