Celebrating women December 13th!

At Women’s empowerment seminar held on Monday, December 13th at 15-19:30PM we had presentations and group discussions how to balance work and family life and live a happy life followed by a networking reception! This event was held as a hybrid event face-to-face at the Metsä Pavilion as well as online on Zoom.

Women’s empowerment seminar
Date: December 13th, 2021 at 15:00 – 19:30
Place: Metsä Pavilion (50 persons) and online (ZOOM)

【Programme】
15:00 Opening words 　-Anna-Maria Wiljanen, Director of the Finnish Institute in Japan
15:15 Inspirational video
15:30 Presentation I – Ms Noriko Sunaga
16:00 Presentation II- Ms Yoriko Ikari
16:30 COFFEE TASTING
17:00 Break
17:10 Presentation III – Ms Shino Mikamo
17:40 Group discussion
18:10 Results of the group discussion
18:45 Closing remarks
18:50 Networking reception (Only on-site participants)
19:30 Doors close

The Finnish Institute in Japan

Photo: pixabay.com

A special Knitting Club for combining the grandmother square blankets will be held on Monday December 13th at 13–14:30PM. The event will be held as a hybrid event on site at the Metsä Pavilion as well as online on Zoom! There are no strict rules about the size of the blanket, so you may make your blanket as big as you want.

If you are not able to join the event, you can also send your blanket directly to the Institute:

The Finnish Institute in Japan/Knitting club
3-5-39 Minami-Azabu
Minato-ku Tokyo 106-8561 Japan

Tips on how to connect the squares:

Registration: https://knitting1213.peatix.com

– Patterns and Forms Inspired by Nature

The legacy of modernism is still strongly present in the day-to-day lives of Finns. The Finnish Design for Everyday Life – Patterns and Forms Inspired by Nature exhibition showcases this history, design and art of modernism from the 1930s to the 1970s. The exhibition sheds a light on the evolution of Finnish design into a well-known phenomena while also offering glimpses into the Helsinki of artists and designers, where Tove Jansson, amongst others, left her mark with her commissioned works and art pieces. The success stories of the Finnish art industry at the New York World’s Fair in 1939 and in the Milan Triennials in the 1950s also have their moments in the spotlight. The exhibition also presents the Finnish textile industry to the Japanese audience, showcasing the successful histories of Marimekko and the Finlayson and Tampella factories.

Nature is still very much present in the Finnish way of life and the day-to-day life. The exhibition studies how various flora and fauna, the different seasons and natural phenomena have inspired artists, photographers, architects and designers. Their experiences of nature manifest in their art, the unique items of the art industry as well as in industrial serial production. The diversity and organicity of nature are reflected on the pieces and works of the exhibition; the posters, photographs, glass and ceramics art, fashion photos and advertisements, textiles, furniture, dishes, paintings and drawings.

The exhibition contains about 300 art works and items from nearly 40 different Finnish artists and designers. In addition to Alvar Aalto, Ilmari Tapiovaara, Tapio Wirkkala, Timo Sarpaneva, Kaj Franck, Michael Schilkin and Birger Kaipiainen, the exhibition showcases a group of influential women designers, such as Aino Aalto, Dora Jung, Eva Taimi, Eva Anttila, Saara Hopea, Gunnel Nyman, Helena Tynell, Nanny Still, Uhra-Beata Simberg-Ehrström, Rut Bryk, Toini Muona, Kyllikki Salmenhaara and Marjatta Metsovaara, who all deserve international attention also during these modern times.

In addition to the collections of the HAM Helsinki Art Museum, items and works in the exhibition have been borrowed from the following collections: The Alvar Aalto Museum/Alvar Aalto Foundation, Design Museum, Helsinki City Museum, Kakkonen Collection, Moomin Characters Ltd, The Finnish Museum of Photography, Vapriikki and private collections.

The exhibition has been curated by HAM curator Heli Harni, with Harri Kalha, PhD, serving as an expert.

Finnish Design for Everyday Life – Patterns and Forms Inspired by Nature
Bunkamura, Tokyo
December 7th 2021 – January 30th 2022
For more information, please visit the museum’s website.

This exhibition has previously been shown in
Tottori Prefectural Museum, Tottori October 10th – November 15th 2020
Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, Fukuoka June 26th – August 29th 2021
The Museum of Ceramic Art, Hyogo September 11th − November 28th 2021

Photo: Tsutomu Miura / Tottori Prefectural Museum

Welcome!

The Finnish Institute in Japan will be hosting the annual Finnish-Swedish Week from Monday November 8th to Friday November 12th. This year’s events will discuss the Finnish-Swedish people in politics, entrepreneurship and entertainment outlining the impact of they have made both in Finland as well as internationally! The week will traditionally end with the ever so popular crayfish party! The events this year (with exception of the crayfish party) will be held as hybrid events.You can join us in the Metsä Pavilion or online in Zoom. Please check our website for further information!
Register for all events at: https://hallatokyo2021.peatix.com/

Programme

Monday, November 8th
Alexander Stubb
The Finnish Swedish Week will begin with the interview of Professor Alexander Stubb. He is the Director of the School of Transnational Governance at the European University Institute. He has served as Prime Minister, Finance Minister, Foreign Minister, Trade and Europe Minister of Finland. Come and listen to Professor Stubb’s thoughts about the impact of Swedish in culture, business and politics but also about the future of the second official language in Finland!

The interview will be followed by a networking reception!
Come and be inspired!

Date and time: 8.11.2021 18-20
Place: Metsä pavilion and online (ZOOM)
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87922562475?pwd=RytVVHdkYUZrSHM0VUhCYXJtUFRoQT09

Tuesday, November 9th
Green Light District

On Tuesday it’s time for music! The hiphop-meets-big bind group Green Light District is a Finnish-Swedish band from Helsinki, known for their covers and original hits. The band of 10 musicians actively explores the borders and limits of different genres due to the vast musical experience and influences between the members.

Date and time: 9.11.2021 18-19:30
Place: Metsä pavilion and online (ZOOM)
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88228990519?pwd=MTR5aFNqUDZCdVNadWduMVRjeGhrZz09

Wednesday, November 10th
Johanna Gullichsen

Finnish designer Johanna Gullichsen will be interviewed about her art, her story as a female entrepreneur and about the sources of her inspiration. Johanna Gullichsen is widely known for her graphic interior textiles. Her sophisticated designs tell a story of their own combining the traditional patterns textile types. Gullichsen has received many prizes-the most recently Kaj Franck Design Prize 2021.

Date and time: 10.11.2021 18-19
Place: Online (ZOOM)
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81812246082?pwd=T0Zrd3gwY2FsT0lucGZNNXd3TFAzUT09

Thursday, November 11th
Ted Urho

Finnish-Swedish week continues on Thursday November 11th with an online talk event “And that’s why Finland celebrates the day a Swedish king fell off his horse and died on a battlefield in Germany in 1632” by Mr. Ted Urho. He will be talking about why the Finns speak Swedish in Finland, the advantages and disadvantages of being a Finnish Swede as well as discussing the story of the dead king and his horse. Ted Urho is the executive manager of the liberal think tank Agenda since 2019. He has previously worked as a journalist, producer and host of the breakfast show.

Date and time: 11.11.2021 18-19
Place: Online (ZOOM)
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87602467035?pwd=bGtWMVRUR25xekVjcGhRaFc1WTNIQT09

Friday, November 12th
Crayfish Party SOLD OUT

Date and time: 12.11.2021 18-21
Place: Metsä pavilion

Japan is the first nation considered to be a “super-ageing society”, while Finland is the fastest ageing country in Europe. Despite the geographical distance and cultural differences, the two countries face very similar challenges in the coming decades: how to maintain the quality of life in a society where the old outnumber the young? How to respond to the needs of a diverse elderly population?

The aim of the conference was to share Finnish and Japanese perspectives and approaches to the issues of ageing. The talks addressed not only the problems, but also the success stories and emerging solutions that can benefit both countries.

Date: October 31st (Thu)
Time: 14:00 – 17:00 (Doors open 13:30)
Venue: Embassy of Finland
3 Chome-5-39 Minamiazabu, Minato City
Free admission
Seminar languages were Japanese and English, interpretation provided

PROGRAMME

13:30 Doors open
14:00 Greeting: Ambassador of Finland Pekka Orpana
Director of Finnish Institute in Japan, Dr. Anna-Maria Wiljanen
14:10 Noora Ervelius (Finnish Institute in Japan)
14:40 Professor, Dr. Midori Takayama. Keio University
15:25 Emeritus Professor, Dr. Tohru Ifukube. Hokkaido University and Tokyo University
16:10 Associate Professor, Dr. Erika Takahashi. Chiba University
16:55 Closing remarks
17:00 Event ends

image: rawpixel

Finnish author Sami Hilvo will take part in the European Literature Festival 2021.
He will have an online talk event on November 25th, 2021 at 18:00 in Japanese.
An excerpt of his latest novel Species-typical Behaviour (2020) can be read on the festival website.
For more information, please visit https://eulitfest.jp/.

Sami Hilvo (b. 1967) is a Finnish author, translator and interpreter. Questioning and new perspectives are at the heart of his literature.

Hilvo’s first novel Viinakortti (The Liquor Ration Card) was published in 2010 and got nominated for the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize. It was translated into German in 2012, and a play based on the novel got its Finnish premiere in 2013.
His second novel Rouva S. (Madame S.) came out in 2012 and takes place in the 21st century Tokyo as well as in Kyoto a thousand years ago. It was nominated for the Tulenkantaja Literature Prize.
Hilvo’s third novel Pyhä peto (Holy Beast) won the Tampere City Literary Award in 2016.
His fourth novel, Lajityypillistä käyttäytymistä (Species-typical Behaviour) was published in 2020.

Hilvo has lived Tokyo and Warsaw, Poland, and now resides in Helsinki. He is currently working on his fifth novel.

Photo: Tuukka Ervasti / Tammi

Eliel Saarinen and His Beautiful Architecture in Finland

Finland is renowned for its beautiful forests and lakes. It is also home to Finnish modernism, an architectural style that is also popular in Japan. One major figure who helped develop the style was Eliel Saarinen (1873–1950). Saarinen founded an architectural firm with university friends Herman Gesellius and Armas Lindgren. One of his first jobs at the firm, designing the Finnish pavilion at the 1900 Paris World Fair, won him considerable praise. Initially, Saarinen worked in a style that was dubbed National Romantic, which while influenced by art nouveau was more focused on expressing the country’s traditional cultures. The nationalist ethos behind this style struck a chord with the people of Finland at a time when they were seeking independence from Russia.

Saarinen and his partners eventually built Hvitträsk, a complex designed to be a cross-genre work of art presenting an ideal lifestyle: living quietly in nature inside a home that also served as a venue for social functions with other artists. Saarinen gradually expanded his work into residences, commercial buildings, public buildings, train stations, and urban design. Through this varied portfolio, Saarinen played an important role in modernizing architecture throughout the first half of the 20th century. What began as a multicultural style with a strong focus on traditional Finnish culture gradually morphed into something more distinctive and modernist, presenting a new kind of Finnish identity.

This exhibition focuses on Saarinen’s work in Finland from the time before his emigration to the United States in 1923. Architectural drawings, photographs, and designs of furniture and lifestyle items shed light on Saarinen’s style, at once revolutionary and grounded in nature and the local environment. He was also skilled at using light and shadow to imbue his work with richness. At a time when many people find themselves pausing to rethink their ways of life, visitors may find Saarinen’s works speaking to them at a visceral level.

Iwaki City Art Museum, Fukushima
Dates November 6 – December 19 2021

More details at the Iwaki City Art Museum website

This exhibition has previously been shown in the Panasonic Shiodome Museum of Art in Tokyo, July 3 – September 20 2021.

Photo: Finnish Heritage Agency, Historian kuvakokoelma