Helsinki is different. An amalgam of technology, art, culture with the texture of Europe and the taste of a future-Earth. I started my Helsinki journey in late June with the perfect companion - a lovely new hard science fiction novel called The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi, probably now Finland’s most famous sci-fi writer.
In a way, Helsinki has a cognitive link to Japan - in terms of street fashion, and technology, and gaming. I felt i was likely to see a TRON inspired outfit here rather than elsewhere in Scandinavia. The fashion seemed strongly inspired as much by the high priests of Paris as by death metal and Gothic influences - strong bold expressions of the Finnish passion for being on the cutting edge.
You can see it in their DNA to produce giants like Nokia (however fledgling now) and more recently, Angry Birds Games, and the various electronic and board games that are very much a part of Finnish culture.
Helsinki’s architecture was the first thing that stuck me en route from the airport to city center. I felt like I was in Russia, with standard block apartment buildings in yellow and gray. And I got closer to the city center though, the landscape changed again, to more classic buildings, high rises, and quirky architectural expressions. Helsinki seemed to have one architectural link with Russia and one with the rest of Scandinavia.
Kamppi Mall is sort of the magnetic center of Helsinki, where trains, metros, Finns, and tourists of all forms converge. Kampii connects you to the three different parts of Finland: Helsinki, Espoo, and Vaanta (Helsinki airport is technically located in Vaanta) conveniently till late night. (point to note especially for party folks living further away from downtown). I didnt find much of interest in the mall itself, but did like the coffee at Wayne’s Coffee and the selections at the Ben & Jerrys.
Kampii has interesting sculptures outside and a wall for artists to come and paint on, i managed to see an artist working on a section as I walked by. A quick walk from Kampii leads you to the main shopping district, where the Forum and Stockmann malls gently guide tourist flow.
A splendid landmark is the old and classical building of the Central Railway Station station. I could imagine it proudly standing during the Second World War, and many harsh winters. The major bus connections including to the Airport are accessible from right outside the station, which is a welcome relief for geographically challenged tourists like me!
The 3 Helsinki museums i managed to check out were the Ateneum, The Kiasma, and the Design Museum. All of them are highly recommended for students and dilatanttes of Art, Design, Architecture, and the creative fields!
The Ateneum Museum, just across the station is the largest collection of Classical Art in Helsinki. At the Ateneum, i spent a good afternoon at the special exhibition on film and photography work by Heikki Aho and Björn Soldan, two legendary constructors of Finland’s modern image (their film ‘Finland Calling’ is a mesmerizing black & white piece). I also saw the Magic of Lapland, an exhibition on the portrayal of Lapland (the inner indigenous part of Finland) since the 1800s (with funky art on bark and 3D models of swamp creatures).
The museum additionally had a photo and audio installation ‘All that Speak the Language Minus 30’, on the rare Inari Sámi language, which only has approx. 300 native speakers in Finland - arranged in a beautiful photo montage with background audio. The museum also features an extensive permanent collection of European and international art, and Japanese woodcut, including works by Gaughin and Van Gogh, and famous pieces like Hugo Simberg’s Wounded Angel.
The Kiasma Museum, with Commander-in-Chief Mannerheim’s statue welcoming you is however, the grand museum in Helsinki, and a must-visit. The highlight of Kiasma during summer has been ARS 11, a series of pieces of contemporary art from Africa. The themes cover the genocide in Rwanda, the evolution of Nigeria, vignettes of crossings and immigrations through Africa’s deadly borders into Europe, urban and environmental conflicts. Around 300 works by 30 artists have covered Africa across 5 levels in the museum, bringing forth different lenses of history and collective memory and subversive takes on Africa.
ARS 11 starts with a floor to ceiling near-garment by El Anatsui, constructed with bottle caps and metal waste. Sammy Baloji’s video Memoire (here on Vimeo) is an abstract dance in the Katanga Mining Area, once the heart of Congo’s industrial renaissance, now a concrete heap.
We Wish To Inform You That We didn’t Know is a powerful video and photo installation by Alfredo Jaar about the 1994 Rwanda Genocide, with survivor interviews interspersed with politicians’ words, especially Clinton feigning ignorance about the massacre. Moments of Beauty by J.D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere chronicles 60 years of culture, architecture, and fashion from Nigeria
Another powerful piece is Silent Symphony by Mary Sibande, where a black woman wears royal Victorian dresses and turning rules of segregation upside down. I found it quite evocative.
Below are glimpses from other exhibits. You can read more on the ARS11 site.
The Design Museum is tucked away in the Design District of Helsinki, a collection of shops and areas that showcase Helsinki’s design sensibilities. (Helsinki is the World Design Capital, 2012). The Museum had an extensive exhibition on the work of iconic Finnish design Kaj Franck and his students over the decades. I loved the samples on display, which were collections of Franck’s defining work with the companies Arabia and Nuutajarvi, now part of the iconic firm Iittala. In particular, i found his use of different colors in glassware fascinating.
Helsinki is a great city to explore on foot. I headed out everyday in different directions and found that each turn takes you to someplace vintage, someplace touristy, someplace hidden. The Cathedral is worth a visit, a beautiful building with a large public space around it. The walk to the top of the Cathedral was worth the view. I walked around the Cathedral and harbor area - here you can see some of the other famous structures including Parliament house, and old churches which almost seem like they could have been from Bavaria or Russia.
Night time brings out an entirely different creature in Helsinki, a creature which loves to be outdoors at midnight and party on in an infinite summer night. There is a huge number of nightclubs within the radius of city center and enough food places to keep revellers sustained in the wee hours of the morning. It is common to see solo performers and musicians as with the rest of Europe, but Helsinki is more likely to also have ad hoc groups simply hanging out with a few bottles of beer and playing good electronica.
The harbor area of Helsinki is quite charming, a nice long walkway leading towards the water.
Soumenlinna is a maritime fortress with historical significance for the Finns, a quick boat ride away. More than the fort itself, the island is quite a charming walk, like a deserted yet amiable ghost town, perfect for lazy afternoon beers and conversations and walks through Hobbit homes.
A quick bus ride away from city center is the city (almost suburb) of Otaniemi in Espoo, home of the world famous Design Factory at Aalto University (named after the famous architect Alvar Aalto). The Design Factory is a passionate place for multi-disciplinary collaboration between designers, engineers and business folks. The University itself is located in a lovely green belt, and if you’re up for a good walk, check out the Laajalahati bird sanctuary at the edge of campus.
The Design Factory is also home to the Summer of Startups, sort of a YCombinator to encourage entrepreneurship in Finland. This year’s 10 selected teams included one from Russia and IN Mobile Labs from India, a testimony to the Finns’ global embrace in the search for the next big idea.
I crashed dorm-style with my two good friends Ankit Kumar and Ashish Agarwal, both recent grads from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur whose startup was selected for the Summer of Startups. Ankit and Ashish are gracious hosts, excellent guides, and super cool intellectual ninjas who know how to party - I had a fantastic time in Helsinki courtesy these two gentlemen.
I also managed to attend a high energy pitching session for the startups by Aape Pohjavirta, entrepreneur and Founder of Ympyra, a radical education startup.
As much as I loved all cities i visited, I would love to go back to Helsinki and explore the many hidden layers and facets of this futuristic and charming and very special city.
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