Pride 2023 at Tapiola museums

1 June – 2 July 2023 | Lounge, 1st floor

Kristoffer Ala-Ketola
HD video
Commissioned work for Pride Month, premiere on 1 June 2023

Expect Revenge is a visual poem that consists of hundreds of scenes, combines different narratives and episodes and creates a proposal for a modified history. The video work borrows its style from the tradition of music videos and video collages.

In this video work, the author contrasts scenes from his personal life with constructed images and describes a queer journey in which different opposites merge together. Through his work, Ala-Ketola reflects on his role as a viewer, author and director, among other things.

The themes of Expect Revenge stem from human encounters, friendship and the history linked to queer politics. The work reflects the way we currently store our lives’ moments to digital devices.

The work has its roots in Finland’s current cultural politics. Ala-Ketola recognises how the creation of art is downplayed and disregarded in public debate, which leads to the deterioration of the preconditions for artists’ livelihoods. The work portrays the joy of creating art while it also depicts the awareness that the creation of art requires support from society. Adhering to Helsinki Pride’s Joy and Riot theme, Ala-Ketola challenges viewers to defend their rights in politics and to support culture.

Kristoffer Ala-Ketola is a Helsinki-based visual artist who graduated from Yale School of Art in 2019. He works with moving image, sculpture, painting and installation art in Helsinki. His works have been exhibited at, for example, Shin Gallery in New York and Kunsthalle Helsinki.

Ala-Ketola’s works deal with the formation of emotions and their impact on our environment. With his works, he aims to provoke thoughts about the politics of our time, the psyche, behaviour and the structures of our culture. Ala-Ketola’s stylistic methods and themes include camp, grotesque and opposition, and his works often feature both humorous and melancholic elements.

Tickets and opening hours.

17 May 2023 at 5.30pm–7.00pm
Ahertajantie 5, Tapiola, Espoo

The Espoo Equality Committee and KAMU Espoo City Museum welcome everyone interested in equal Espoo to listen and discuss the rainbow life experiences in Espoo that cross generations! At the event,

you will hear stories of young people of gender minority and under the age of 20 and discuss topics arising from the texts as audience discussion and panel comments. The panelists are from Sateenkaariseniorit ry, Espoo parish union and the equality and non-equality committee. In addition, in connection with the event, you can familiarize yourself with the program offerings of the City of Espoo's Senior Package.

What could we do together so that the rainbow future in Espoo would be more diverse and confronting than it is today?

In the yard of Exhibition Center WeeGee, you can visit Espoo City Library's multi-purpose vehicle Välky, from which you can borrow rainbow literature even after the Exhibition Center is closed. Välkky will be there from 18:30 to 19:30.

Program

The event will be chaired by Antti Jäänvirta, representative of the Equality Commission

17.30 Opening of the event (KAMU Espoo City Museum)

Seven texts about the experiences of young people belonging to the gender minority in Espoo, with members of the Equality and Equality Commission as readers nimet myöhemmin

Public discussion and panel comments (Risto Hartikainen, chairman, Sateenkaariseniorit ry, Matti Peiponen, multiculturalism expert, Evangelical Lutheran parishes of Espoo, Ira Hietanen-Tanskanen, chairman, Equality Commission)

18.50 Closing remarks by Ira Hietanen-Tanskanen

19.00 Exhibition center WeeGee closes

The event is free of charge and barrier-free. The language is Finnish however, you can give your comments in English, too. KAMU Espoo City Museum follows the principles of a safer space.

14 June 2023 from 2 pm to 3.30 pm
Ahertajantie 5, Tapiola, Espoo

Sateenkaariseniorit ry., Rainbow Seniors, and KAMU Espoo City Museum organize the first meeting of the group of Sateenkaariseniorit at KAMU in the Exhibition Center WeeGee (Ahertajantie 5, Tapiola, Espoo) on June 14. at 2 p.m. Welcome! The program includes talks from both the Rainbow Seniors and the museum, relaxed get-togethers, and coffee. The meeting is free of charge and held in Finnish.

Accessibility information: The space is accessible and located on the 1st floor of WeeGee. In front of WeeGee, there are accessible parking spaces, from which a ramp leads to the main door. Guide and assistance dogs are welcome. We follow the principles of a safer space in WeeGee.

Those arriving for the meeting will be greeted by a KAMU employee in the lobby of WeeGee between 1:45 and 1:55 p.m. and s/he will open the doors to the KAMU office meeting room. You can also join by informing the ticket office about meeting at KAMU.

Sateenkaariseniorit ry association offers peer group activities nationwide remotely online and in person in various locations, now also in Espoo.

Wednesday 14.6. at 17:30
Ahertajantie 5, Tapiola, Espoo

The Clown Ambition drag workshop led by House of Auer will conclude on Wednesday 14.6. at 17:30 with a fabulous drag show at KAMU WeeGee. Throughout the workshops, the participants have been trained to become the next shining stars of the Espoo drag scene and now they have a unique chance to showcase their talent to everyone. In addition to the stars from the workshop, the iconic Vantaa-born drag collective House of Auer will also be taking the stage. Come, enjoy and show your support!

The event is open to all and free to attend. The event will take place in Tapiola, at the Exhibition Centre WeeGee, at Ahertajantie 5.

Accessibility information: The space is fully accessible and located on the 1st floor of WeeGee. Accessible parking spaces in front of WeeGee, with a ramp leading to the main entrance. Accessible toilets are located on the 1st floor and on the ground floor with lift access. Guide and assistance dogs are welcome. Do not hesitate to contact us for more information via email at houseofauer@gmail.com or via IG at @houseofauer.

Clown Ambition is a part of KAMU’s Pride month programme. The city of Espoo is one of the main partners of Helsinki Pride.

Arrival instructions.

The Museum of Play will celebrate the Pride Month and the Helsinki Pride week with queer guided tours and rainbow themed workshops during 1–30 June 2023. Museum of Play is located in the vicinity of WeeGee at Ahertajankuja 3. More information at the museums’ own website(external link).

Friday 2 June from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

At the Museum of Play, the Pride Month will be kickstarted with a rainbow morning for the little ones on Friday 2 June at 9 a.m. The morning programme for the little ones includes a window painting workshop: they get to decorate the windows of the Museum of Play workshop with a summery look in all the colours of the rainbow together with their own adult. Included in museum ticket price.

Tue 30 May at 10 am – 12.30 pm | Sat 17 June at 2–4 pm | Thu 29 June at 3–5 pm.

Shared coffee moments together with Sateenkaariperheet ry.

Sat 3 June, 10 June, 17 June and 1 July from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

In this workshop, you can upgrade a traditional wooden spinning top into a fantastic new version shining in all the colours of the rainbow. Workshop fee 2 € per spinning top.

Wed–Fri 28–30 June at 5 p.m.

The guided tour leads you to the Laboratory of Play exhibition from a queer point of view. The guided tour is included in the price of the museum ticket.

Fri 30 June at 5.30 pm to 18.15

The guided tour visits the works of EMMA’s current exhibitions through gender and sexual diversity. On the tour we will discuss how the body and identity as well as otherness appear in art. The tour is suitable for everyone wishing to challenge their ways of seeing and thinking. In Finnish.