Tampere lights up its iconic landmarks and sites in the colors of Finnish flag during the 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. The blue and white illuminations can be seen during the tournament on May 13–29.
The City of Tampere organizes Home of Hockey celebrations at Frenckell square on Wednesday 11 May 2022 from 5–6 pm as a kickoff for the 2022 Ice Hockey World Championship. The event will feature live music including Sani and Kalevauva featuring Waltteri Torikka, among others, and interviews with well-known hockey personalities. Finland’s ice hockey team will also go on stage to greet the crowd. The city welcomes everyone to celebrate the homecoming of ice hockey.
The Studio at Culture House Laikku features an exhibition by visual artist Johanna Ilvessalo. The exhibition deals with traces that remind of the fragile nature of human existence. The spatial work is a dream-like combination of various materials and elements, such as water, light, reflections and shadows. Free admission.
Hartikainen bases all her design details and colors around the context of everyday life. She evidently reflects in her art the anxiety and worries which rise from the ever-increasing recent breaches on women and LGBTIQ+ rights in Turkey.
Tampere Photographic Society organizes a joint exhibition of Pirkanmaa-based camera clubs at the Gallery of Culture House Laikku. The exhibition features works of amateur photographers. Free admission.
All indoor public events and general meetings are prohibited until 4 February 2022.
All indoor public events and general meetings are prohibited until 21 January 2022.
The Gallery of Culture House Laikku features works of art from Sanna Kananoja’s latest series of tempera paintings, Water Flows in the Desired Direction. By the means of landscape painting Kananoja examines the relations between man and nature, as well as the essence of time and the ability of nature to adapt to the circumstances at hand. The series is premised on the ditches dug for the construction of roads, and the flora that grows therein. Free admission.
The COVID-19 situation is difficult in Pirkanmaa, and this includes Tampere. Always remember to wear a face mask, keep safety distances and maintain good hand hygiene. Here is a compilation of information on common COVID-19 related issues.
“Accept the grief. Accept the pain. Accept the loneliness and the broken heart. Let the grief sweep over you like a wave. Over, until it rises again. Everything is constantly changing. Breathe. Breathe. Everything is here.”
More strict restrictions imposed by the Regional State Administrative Agency, which will come into force on 13th December 2021, affect some services of City of Tampere and expand the use of the COVID-19 passport.
The prevalence of coronavirus in Tampere Region is now at the highest level it has been at any time during the pandemic. The Regional State Administrative Agency for Western and Inland Finland has imposed assembly restrictions in the Tampere Region for indoor public events involving more than 100 people. The restrictions apply to events with an audience in stands. Communal singing events are also subject to restrictions.
The Government of Finland awards the International Gender Equality Prize now for the third time. This year's prizewinner is We Will Stop Femicide Platform, an organisation that does groundbreaking work combating violence against women in Turkey and whose work has a global relevance.
The exhibition of the Valontaivuttajat collective at the Gallery of Culture House Laikku features works created by using light. The collective specializes in paintings, sculptures, experimental techniques and installations all made with light. Free admission.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad will visit Finland at the invitation of Prime Minister Sanna Marin. Murad will speak at the International Gender Equality Prize award ceremony on Monday 22 November in Tampere.
In her exhibition at the Studio of Culture House Laikku the artist Tiitu Takalo shares light on her personal experience of suddenly falling severely ill. She deals with themes of the momentary and finite nature of life as well as the passing of all things through her graphic novel artwork and other artistic means. Free admission.
The Gallery of Culture House Laikku features an exhibition of two experimental films by Saara Ekström. The artist is known for her long career in using various media such as photography, film and installation. Free admission.
The 40th international Tampere Jazz Happening will be organized at the Tullikamari's Pakkahuone, Klubi, as well as restaurant Telakka venues between 4th and 7th November, 2021. During four days, altogether 22 ensembles will perform at the festival, including the winner of this year's Yrjö Award, who will be performing in conjunction with the award ceremony that takes place at the festival. This anniversary year's festival program includes artists such as John Scofield & Dave Holland, Lakecia Benjamin, and Pepe Willberg & Jukka Eskola Statement.
Finland’s first international Walk of Fame for music, located in Tampere, has received five new star plates. To celebrate the Tampere Day on 1.10.2021, five new stars for the big names in the music industry were immortalised on the Walk of Fame: Mikko Alatalo, Yö, Värttinä, Kaija Koo and Esa-Pekka Salonen.
The sound and video art created by Icelandic artist Arna Valsdóttir and Tampere-based artist Raisa Foster at the Gallery of Culture House Laikku invite the audience to take part in a sensory journey through different layers of realities.
An exhibition of sculptures and textile art by Ninni Luhtasaari is on display in October at the Studio of Culture House Laikku. The works of Luhtasaari deal with themes concerning the animal in human, primitivity, self-image and self-acceptance through the use of ambiguous figures.
Tampere Day will be celebrated from 1 October to 3 October 2021. As usual, the city will be filled to the brim with culture, art and events with open access to everyone on the weekend of the event. This year, Tampere celebrates its 242nd anniversary.
Tonight We Dance, a solo exhibition of works by Marcel Dzama, originally from Canada and now living and working in New York, presents works on the theme of dance that reflect his powerful subconscious world.
Älä saapastele onnesi ohi! is the 45th anniversary exhibition of MSC Finland – Tom’s Club, established in 1976. In addition to works by Tom of Finland, the exhibition presents pieces by Leeku, as well as material created for MSC by photographer Mikko Karekivi in the 2000s.
The first international Walk of Fame for music in Finland was opened in Tampere in the autumn of 2019, when 11 of the first star plates were embedded in the street. Last year, six new names were added to the Walk of Fame. New stars are added every year based on suggestions from the public. Now, it is time to suggest the recipients of stars for 2021.
Oulu has been selected as the European Capital of Culture 2026. The selection was announced by an international panel of experts in Helsinki on 2 June 2021.
This year's Tampere Vocal Music Festival is coming directly to you as a free, online, streamed event from the 9th to the 13th of June 2021.
The City of Tampere has launched a new Tampere Ambassadors program from the beginning of 2021 with a new concept.
This audiovisual extravaganza brings together the hottest European figure skating, ice hockey and performing arts talents for a unique family show.
The Corona pandemic has made the operation of multi-cultural associations in many ways more challenging. Due to these issues the Cultural Services of the City of Tampere has decided to declare an application process for a one-time grant of 2000 €, for supporting the operation of multi-cultural associations.
Tampere and Tampere Region’s European Capital of Culture application is moving on to a new phase with the appointment of three parties to a creative committee to lead the process. The team will lead the development of the creative programme for the Capital of Culture year. The programme content has been developed by industry professionals through, among other things, an open call for programme proposals.
This year, Tampere Christmas Market will open in two stages: the restaurants and some of the cottages will open for Christmas on Saturday, 28 November, and the whole market will be open from 4 December. There will be no major event to open the proceedings and other new arrangements have also been introduced to Christmas Market so that the area will be safe both for vendors and customers.
Every Tampere Day, the City of Tampere traditionally bestows an award on distinguished individuals whose life’s work or activities have contributed to the development of the city and the well-being of its residents. This year, to celebrate the City of Tampere’s 241st anniversary, the city wants to recognise individuals who have been active in the city’s business sector for a long time.
This year, the Tampere Jazz Happening will feature a completely Finnish programme. For this exceptional edition, the festival is presented on a smaller scale than usual, during four days, between 29th October and 1st November 2020. The event has two dedicated venues, Pakkahuone and Telakka, and they will welcome a total of 18 ensembles and orchestras.
This year we are celebrating Tampere’s 241st anniversary. Due to exceptional circumstances, the full programme for Tampere Day will be organised online. Tampere Day will be celebrated on 1–4 October with an assorted programme including live webcasts and video recordings.
This year, everyone can participate in the Tampere Day concert.
A new library will open in the yard of Nekala’s school building. The first mobile container library in Finland will operate with extensive, self-service opening hours.
Jenni Yppärilä’s exhibition Passing by at the Haihara Art Centre 8.8.–30.8. Since 2012 Yppärilä has been documenting built environments in Finland and elsewhere in the form on three-dimensional paintings.
Jukka Silokunna's Entropy I exhibition at Haihara Art Centre 8.8.–30.8.2020. Jukka Silokunnas is a media artist working with video, animation, and Augmented Reality.
Tampere and 19 municipalities in the surrounding region continue to the second stage in the competition for the title of European Capital of Culture 2026. The second stage of the Capital of Culture application is being prepared by a new application team.
The museums of the City of Tampere that have been closed due to the coronavirus situation are re-opening in June.
The branches of the Tampere City Library will open on 1 June, with the exception of Koukkuniemi Library. Self-service opening hours will not be used for now.
Tampere Art Museum opens 2 June 2020 presenting two exhibitions. Covering two floors of the museum, the exhibition of Joseph Alanen (1885–1920) presents a wide selection of his works on Kalevala themes, but there are also depictions of folk life, religious subjects, prints and drawings. Tampere-based artist Ilkka Väätti (b. 1955) is known as a painter, graphic artist and builder of architectons. Ilkka Väätti’s exhibition Hommage presents his latest works from 2017-2020.
Tampere City Library units will open on 1 June. However, customers can pick up their reservations from the Main Library Metso as well as Sampola, Hervanta, Lielahti and Koilliskeskus libraries already starting from Monday 11 May.
The City of Tampere used a survey to map out the impacts of the coronavirus on event activities in the region. The survey was sent to almost 400 culture and sports organisations in the Tampere region. 129 responses were received by 20 March. The aim of circulating the survey was to investigate the impacts of the precautionary measures taken due to the coronavirus on event organisers and the event production sector in the Tampere region. In order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, public events of more than 10 persons have been forbidden in the entire country until 13 April 2020.
All Tampere indoor swimming pools, youth centres, ice stadiums, indoor sports facilities, heated artificial turf fields and the artificial ice rink on Koulukatu Street are closed until further notice. Ski tracks, trekking paths and other similar sites for spontaneous exercise are still available and maintained when possible.
Tampere Hall and Tampere Region’s Capital of Culture bid 2026 are collaborating with Tallinn Music Week and proudly presenting the opening concert of TMW on March 26.
Joseph Alanen was one of the leading illustrators of the Kalevala, the national epic of Finland. Covering two floors of the museum, this exhibition presents a wide selection of his works on Kalevala themes, but there are also depictions of folk life, religious subjects, prints and drawings.
Anna Alapuro (b. 1953) from Tampere is one of the best-known Finnish graphic artists. The individual exhibition opening in the basement of Tampere Art Museum presents her colour-saturated graphic art from the last few years. It consists of about 60 works, including for the first time a series of works from 2019-2020 that was inspired by a trip to India and the Himalayas, as well as works related to St. Petersburg, Paris and Tampere from the period of 2014-2018.
The common factor uniting the works in the Still Still Life exhibition, which opens on 1st February, is a conception of the still life and its essence. The exhibition presents an overview of the interpretations and forms that the still life has received in modern and contemporary art.
Christmas and New Year cause changes to the opening hours of the City of Tampere health services, libraries, museums, swimming pools, as well as offices and customer service points. In addition to these, there are some exceptions in the public transport timetables.
The Tampere Jazz Happening begins on Thursday, 31st October. The opening concert of the festival is free of charge for the audiences and includes performances by three exquisite French ensembles: Melusine, Three Days of Forest, and House of Echo.
Tampere Festival of Light illuminates the streets of the Tampere city centre once again during the darkest season. This year, the Festival of Light was opened earlier than usual, on 5 October, to celebrate the City of Tampere’s 240th anniversary. The Festival of Light continues until 8 March 2020. Tampere Festival of Light is celebrated for the 54th time this year.
Finland’s first international walk of fame for music has been inaugurated in Tampere. In the first phase, eleven star plates were embedded in the walk of fame street route, located on Åkerlundinkatu in the Tulli region of Tampere. Seven of the star plates honour Finland’s biggest national and international artists and professionals in the music industry. The public’s suggestions for the names to be immortalised on Finland’s Walk of Fame were collected last spring.
On PIKI day, 23 September, libraries in the Pirkanmaa region introduced two new services: the PIKI mobile library application and OverDrive, which includes foreign language e-books and e-audiobooks.
Tampere, established on 1 October 1779, celebrates its 240th birthday this year. In honour of the festive year and the European Capital of Culture bid, culture is the birthday celebration’s theme. The festive week’s programme includes a variety of cultural events, including arts, music, dance, theatre, exercise and communality. During the festivities, the City of Tampere is bursting with more than one hundred fantastic events and activities. As a birthday present to citizens, Tampere is offering a unique public art entity along the shore route by Tammerkoski Rapids.
The large-scale retrospective exhibition of Finnish artist Juhani Harri (1939–2003) includes over 100 works from 1960 until 2002.
The Haihara Art Center will exhibit a contemporary art exhibition from August 10th to September 1st 2019 Down by the Lake -14 Years of Tampere-Düsseldorf Artist-in-Residence-programme. The art exhibition features a wide variety of works by contemporary artists from Pirkanmaa and Düsseldorf.
Two significant exhibitions of Japanese manga art will open in September at the Tampere Art Museum. Osamu Tezuka – The God of Manga is the first European museum exhibition of work by Osamu Tezuka, known as the creator and god of Japanese manga. Consisting of original works, the exhibition is produced in association with the Osamu Tezuka Production company of Tokyo and it will be on the middle and upper floors of the museum. The MangaMania! exhibition on the ground floor addresses manga as an art form and a cultural phenomenon.
There are two new exhibitions opening in Tampere Art Museum on 8th June 2019. Nastja Säde Rönkkö has been chosen The Young Artist of the Year 2019 and her exhibition Altered Breaths, Future Feelings will be presented on the two upper floors of the museum. Lars Holmström’s exhibition LXX -spectrum- features large paintings, relief paintings, constructions and video pieces.
Even though the summer is quietening down the city streets and changing the opening hours of services, Tampere will provide a multitude of services to its residents in the summer months as well. Using the summer calendar, you can check which social and health services centres will be open and look up the opening hours of libraries and indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Tampere in summer is full of festivals and other events where you can make the greatest memories to look back on in the wintertime.
Out of Office, the Summer Exhibition of this, the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Sara Hildén Art Museum, has been compiled from works in the Sara Hildén Foundation’s collection. It features both Finnish and foreign paintings, drawings and sculptures, including some of the collection’s most recent acquisitions and previously unseen works. On Friday 7 June the 40th anniversary will be celebrated with the Open Doors Day.
An international ideas competition started off on 15 May 2019 in Viinikanlahti, a highly exciting area close to Tampere city centre. Competitors get to design a housing area of over 3,000 residents on the shores of Lake Pyhäjärvi, as well as a leisure time environment for the locals and tourists. With a population of roughly 370,000, the sustainably growing Tampere is the largest inland city in the Nordic Countries and, together with the neighbouring municipalities, forms the second-largest urban area in Finland.
Next autumn, Finland’s first national and international Walk of Fame will be constructed in the Tulli area of Tampere. The street route on Åkerlundinkatu is a tribute to Finnish music, artists, musicians and producers. A central part of the street will be the star plates embedded in the street that honour distinguished professionals from the music industry. The first phase in autumn 2019 includes 11 stars that are embedded in the street. The public gets to select six of the stars. Suggestions for the names eternalised in the star plates can be submitted at www.tampere.fi/tahtikatu during May.
In honor of Europe Day 2019, the city of Tampere is encouraging all city dwellers to experience international cultural events, explore new perspectives and influence Tampere’s and Tampere Region’s European Capital of Culture application process. On May 9, you can get inspired by the tales of a German puppet theater in the main library Metso at 10 a.m. and be entertained by a European folk dance show in front of the cultural house Laikku at 4 p.m. On May 11, Europe Day celebrations continue in Hervanta where Tampere 2026 Opinion Festival will take place at Shopping Centre Duo in Finnish, between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. Admission is free.
Tampere is looking to become the European Capital of Culture in 2026, and the application process will be launched with a public event in the industrial Hiedanranta venue on Saturday 30 March 2019. The event starts at 12:00 p.m. and goes until 7:30 p.m.
Tampere celebrates its 240th anniversary on 1 October 2019. The jubilee year will be celebrated for 240 hours through arts and culture in a 10-day event organised by the City of Tampere between 27 September and 6 October 2019. The public art entity that will be constructed around the new Tammerkoski shore route will be an essential part of the celebrations. The aim is that the shore route will offer artistic experiences and become a special passage to both local residents and tourists visiting the city.
The spring programme of Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra features classics of orchestral music from composers such as Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Stravinsky, Sibelius and Shostakovich. Highlights of the spring include Space Odyssey 2019, a concert of space-themed classical and film music as well as the film Song of the Blood-Red Flower, accompanied by new music from Jonne Valtonen. Families get to enjoy Carnival of the Animals children’s concerts. The spring season also includes the traditional concert of Baroque music, a choir concert on Holy Thursday as well as the May Day concerts. In February, the orchestra will perform Puccini’s La bohème at the Tampere Opera under conductor Alberto Hold-Garrido. The season ends with a concert with the a cappella group Club for Five at Tampere Vocal Music Festival.
The library will be closed for renovations for a week at the turn of November and December. Customers will still be able to return items and pick up reserved items in Sampola during the renovations.
Society for the History of Technology has chosen the Finnish Museum of Games, located in the Museum Centre Vapriikki in Tampere, to receive the 2018 Dibner Award for Excellence in Museum Exhibits. The award was announced on October 13th at the Society’s Annual Meeting in St. Louis. This is the first time the award is given to a museum in Finland.
King Gustav III of Sweden signed the foundation document of the City of Tampere on 1 October 1779. To commemorate this occasion, Tampere holds a yearly celebration on the first day of October and the closest weekend to that date. Tampere turns 239 this year. Tampere Day is celebrated from Saturday, 29 September, to Monday, 1 October 2018.
The exhibition opening on the top floor of the Sara Hildén Art Museum on September 22 is the first solo show in Finland by the painter Anj Smith (b. 1978), who lives and works in London.
The 37th annual Tampere Jazz Happening festival will be organized between 1st and 4th November, 2018. Altogether 25 ensembles and orchestras will perform during this year’s festival in 10 concert events.
Womex World Music Expo 2019 will take place in Tampere. The 25th edition of the most important conference and showcase festival for global music will be held 23-27 October, 2019.
Tampere and Mänttä Vilppula together apply to become the European Capital of Culture 2026, which is the next time a Finnish city can become a Capital of Culture. With the help of the initiative, the cities want to become even more charismatic cities of experiences. Tampere is the main applicant city, Mänttä-Vilppula the main partner in cooperation.
Even though the summer is quietening down the city streets and changing the opening hours of services, Tampere will provide a multitude of services to its residents in the summer months as well. Using the summer calendar, you can check which social and health services centres will be open and look up the opening hours of libraries and indoor swimming pools. Tampere in summer is full of festivals and other events where you can make the greatest memories to look back on in the wintertime.
Summer in Tampere is once again full of music and dance - the Park Concerts organised by Cultural Affairs spread around the city. The concerts continue throughout the summer, including nearly 200 free concerts and dance performances around Tampere. The artists of the Park Concerts are all local and, as usual, there is a wide range of events available. The musical selection ranges from classical to punk, and the dance performances include wheelchair dancing as well as Bollywood moves.
The renovation of the old library has been completed on schedule. The decoration and moving work have been completed, and the building will reopen as the renewed Culture House Laikku on Saturday, 28 April with a large opening ceremony carnival. In the event, Laikku will demonstrate its versatility and take charge of the cultural centre, the surrounding park and the recently renovated Laikunlava from 10 am to 6 pm with its colourful programme.
This year Tampere Film Festival is in 7th –11th March and the main focus is on the International and National Competitions. The National Competition includes 37 films, the International 61 films.
The spring exhibition of the Sara Hildén Art Museum presents an overview of the moving works of the sculptor Berlinde De Bruyckere. In this, the centenary year of the Finnish Civil War, the exhibition offers an opportunity to confront human suffering and vulnerability.
Museum Centre Vapriikki, which is situated in Tampere, has been crowned Museum of the Century. The musician A.W. Yrjänä rewarded Vapriikki at the Cultural Gala of the Century organized in Logomo in Turku on the 18th of October.
The Festival of Light’s opening ceremony will take place in the city’s Koskipuisto Park on 27 October at 7 p.m. The programme for the event includes the breathtaking Tammerkoski laser show and is set to culminate in a stunning fireworks display. The event’s headline act is Diandra Flores. This is the 52nd time the Festival of Light returns to Tampere to illuminate the city during the darkest time of the year. The festival run is set to conclude on 11 March 2018.
Tampere will celebrate its 238th anniversary from 29 September to 1 October. Local providers, including associations and the city’s departments, will organise more than 100 individual events over the anniversary weekend. The festivities will include archery, robots, communal art and guided tours.
The solo exhibition of the American artist Robert Longo (b. 1953) in the Sara Hildén Art Museum is the first extensive presentation of his works in the Nordic countries.
Tampere Jazz Happening, the festival that earlier this year won the prestigious EJN Award for Adventurous Programming, will be organized for the 36th time, taking place between 2nd and 5th November, 2017. The festival features some of the most innovative musicians in modern jazz, both from Finland and from abroad. The festival includes ten concert events that bring to the stages of Klubi, Pakkahuone, and Telakka altogether 25 ensembles and orchestras.
Renovations for Tampere Hall are complete and the world’s only Moomin Museum opens. Welcome to the get-together 17.-18.6. Tampere Hall and Sorsapuisto are filled with festivities the entire weekend. All festivities at the event are free, admission fee to the Moomin Museum is 12 € for adults, 6 € for children aged 3-17. Moomin Museum is open until midnight on Saturday.
When are the health centres open during the summer? How do the buses operate? Are the indoor swimming pools open? What should we do? The summer season brings changes to the opening hours of the city’s services. The Summer Memo is a compilation of the opening hours of services and tips on what to do in Tampere during the summer.
The Summer Park Concert Series will once again bring life to the parks and yards of Tampere with music and dance performances. Groups of local artists will perform rock, country, choral music and much more from late May until August around the city. The programme for the park concert series has now been published on the new website, which presents all 150 performers to the public. Website users can also create a customised event calendar for the summer. The first concert takes place at Näsinpuisto on Tuesday 30 May.
The summer season has started at Amuri Museum of Workers’ Housing. The rare wooden city block presents workers’ homes in Tampere from the 1880s to the 1970s and tells the stories of their imaginary residents. The museum’s summer is also full of exciting events, from guided tours to outdoor concerts.
Come and find out about all the nice things you can do for free during summer in Tampere! The infosession takes place on Thursday 1.6.2017 from 5 pm to 7 pm at Main Library Metso (Kuusi-hall), the address is Pirkankatu 2.