The title of the main exhibition is “The Settlers”.
MAIN EXHIBITION
THE SETTLERS – ANDREAS ALARIESTO’S MEMORIES OF SOMPIO
Andreas Alariesto was a unique storyteller whose works preserve the vanishing folklore of Lapland. The exhibition The Settlers takes you on a journey to the wilderness of Sompio, where axes and hard labor turned the wilds into homes. Alariesto’s colorful paintings and their accompanying stories provide a window into the settlers’ everyday lives, their resilience, and their deep connection with nature.
Marika Välimaa
Curator
Open Tue-Sat 10-16
The visiting exhibitions are “The Artist and His Model” and “Forest Sámi: History, Language, and Culture”.
VISITING EXHIBITION
The Artist and His Model
“The Artist and Their Model” presents portraits by Reidar Särestöniemi, reflecting his artistic development since his student years in Leningrad (1956–1959). The works span from traditional portraits and deep self-portraits in animal guises to warm, respectful depictions of friends, showcasing a color palette that evolved from harmonious tones to vibrant, pure colors.
Liisa Tervahauta
Director of the Särestöniemi Museum, emeritus
FOREST SÁMI: HISTORY, LANGUAGE, AND CULTURE
The exhibition opens to the public on 13 October 2026.
The exhibition “Forest Sámi: History, Language, and Culture” based on academic research, and provides an overview of everyday lives, clothing traditions, and ancient cultural practices of the Sámi inhabitants of the forest regions of central Finnish Lapland. They have been recorded in tax registers, census records, and land registers from the 1550s onward, and they were the ancestors of many of the present-day inhabitants of the region. The exhibition also explores traditional beliefs and customs of the Forest Sámi, such as the worship of sacred Seita sites and beliefs concerning, for instance, the afterlife and the spirit world. In addition, the exhibition traces how the culture and Kemi Sámi language of the Forest Sámi people gradually became invisible as a result of migration from both the south and the north, the Lapland War (1944-1945) between German and Finnish troops, and industrial land use especially after the WWII. The exhibition has been curated by the award-winning historian, Professor Maria Lähteenmäki.
OPENING HOURS
The exhibitions are open
Tuesday – Saturday 10 – 4 p.m.
Closed on public holiday
TICKETS
Adult 10 €
Seniors, students and schoolchildren 8€
Group. min 10 people, 8 € / person
Children under 7 free