90 Years of the Free Art School

Anniversary Programme

April 3, 2025 – Open House Day

We welcome everyone interested in discovering the Free Art School – as well as those already familiar with it: alumni and teachers from across the decades. We’ll answer questions, showcase the school and its facilities, and offer selected publications and support products at special prices.

April 24, 2025 – Book Release: Teaching Painting for 90 Years

A book on the history and pedagogy of the Free Art School will be published in conjunction with the opening of the anniversary exhibition at HAM Helsinki Art Museum. Contributors include Juha-Heikki Tihinen, Magnus Quaife, Riikka Stewen, Satu Metsola, and Juhani Pallasmaa.

April 25, 2025 – January 4, 2026 – Vapaa 90 Anniversary Exhibition at HAM

Vapaa 90 exhibition explores the 90-year history of the Free Art School and its significance in the development of Finnish painting and modernism. The aim of the loosely chronological presentation is to identify the red – or more accurately, multicoloured – thread: the spirit of “Vapaa” that connects and unifies all nine decades.

May 2, 2025 – Opening of the Vapaa ’25 Graduation Exhibition

Join us for the exhibition opening on Friday, May 2, from 5 to 8 p.m.
Cable Factory, Puristamo, Tallberginkatu 1, 00180 Helsinki.
Click here for directions.

May 3–18, 2025 – Vapaa ’25 Graduation Exhibition

This May, 12 painters will graduate from the Free Art School – the only institution in Finland dedicated solely to painting:
Moona Aho, Eino Aitamurto, Albert Eronen, Vappu Holma, Pinja Kanon, Alex Keyriläinen, Marika Maijala, Eevi Oittinen, Maria Rasinkangas, Aaron Sirainen, Aino Suikkanen, and Mirja Väyrynen.

October 17, 2025 – Alumni Event

An event organised by alumni of the Free Art School, open to all former students.

Dates to Be Confirmed:

• Autumn semester, Friday afternoons: Public lectures at HAM Helsinki Art Museum (included with museum admission)
• Professional seminar focused on painting, held in Helsinki