Museums are full of stories and offer an interesting and aesthetic learning environment. Yet few people, especially children and young people, think of visiting museum exhibitions or following museum events and clubs as a hobby, even though research shows that culture can be a gateway to a healthier and happier life. Many museums offer free admission to people under 18, and in many cases, exhibitions can be experienced in more ways than just looking with your eyes.
Museums hold stories that would otherwise remain untold. Culture can help prevent illness, teach empathy, and reflect the viewer’s emotions. For example, one person might be irritated by a work of art while another finds it fascinating, because we all reflect our experiences through what we see. Making art allows you to leave your mark and feel heard. Art can also provide a shared language when no common spoken language exists. Museums act as a compass, pointing to the direction we are heading and teaching us lessons from the past.¹
Let me briefly introduce the work of the museums of the City of Vaasa. The City of Vaasa has five museums: the Ostrobothnian Museum, the Kuntsi Museum of Modern Art, the Tikanoja Art Home, the Old Vaasa Museum (open only during summer), and the Vaasa City Art Gallery. Each year, these museums host around 12 exhibitions on current topics. Visitors can explore authentic objects and artworks, reflecting on the past and present through their own experiences.
Museums also offer activities for all ages, which are announced on their websites and social media channels. Regular activities include artist meetings, guided tours, children’s art clubs, and a Youth Museum Panel. Depending on staffing and budget, we also regularly organize workshops and events for all ages.
At the Ostrobothnian Museum, visitors can complete activity trails and explore educational materials online, and occasionally in other museums too. You can even smell the scents of the past and listen to stories told by historical figures. At the Kuntsi Museum of Modern Art, many exhibitions allow for hands-on activities and participation. On the third floor of the Tikanoja Art Home, visitors can immerse themselves in another world and take photos of themselves as part of an artwork on stage.
You can visit exhibitions alone or with others. In a museum, you’re never truly alone. The stories told through the exhibits and objects keep you company. You are free to feel, to be, and even to critique what’s on display, but please don’t touch the objects or artworks, as they can be damaged. The stories they carry are meant to be preserved for future generations. You are warmly welcome in museums just as you are.
Author: Liisa Palomäki, Museum Educator, Museums of the City of Vaasa
This blog post is the work of a student who took part in the summer 2022 course Foundations of Pedagogical Work in Children’s and Youth Leisure Activities. The course was aimed at instructors working in children’s and youth leisure activities, particularly those involved in the Finnish model for leisure activities. Participants attended lectures on pedagogy and child development, took part in peer mentoring, and completed a final development task based on the lectures and assigned readings.
The course was organised by the Finnish Observatory for Arts and Cultural Education and the University of the Arts Helsinki Open Campus in cooperation with the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture and the Finnish Olympic Committee. It is part of the implementation of Finland’s National Child Strategy.
¹ e.g. Laitinen, Liisa. “Perspectives on the Health Effects of Art and Culture”, Sitra, 21 October 2017. Accessed 4 March 2022. https://www.sitra.fi/artikkelit/nakokulmia-taiteen-ja-kulttuurin-terveysvaikutuksiin/
Photo: Michał Parzuchowski (Unplash)
This blog was originally published in Finnish on the lastenkulttuuri.fi website on 29 November 2022.
