Call for exhibitions [City of Tampere]

Call for exhibitions 2027

The Public Cultural Services of the City of Tampere maintains a year-round exhibition space in the Culture House Laikku in Keskustori. During summertime there are also exhibitions at the Haihara Art Centre in Kaukajärvi.

The exhibitions for 2026 have been selected.

The call for exhibitions for 2027 opens on Wednesday 4th February 2026 and closes on Monday 16th March 2026 at noon, 12 am.

The call includes the Laikku Gallery and Studio and the Manor and Stable in the Haihara Art Centre.

The Laikku Gallery is aimed at individual artists or group exhibitions of visual culture, as well as third sector operators, associations and festivals. There will be an average of eight exhibition periods per year. A small rent is charged for the space.

The Laikku Studio is profiled as an exhibition space for contemporary art for professional artists. There are only 8 exhibition slots per year. Free of charge.

The Haihara Art Centre's Stable is mainly aimed at educational groups, art enthusiasts and associations. Three or four exhibition slots are available. The space is rented on a per-exhibition basis, depending on the size of the group.

The main building of the Haihara Art Centre, Manor, will have one exhibition lasting approximately two months in summer 2027. The development of the Haihara Art Center is based on a neighborhood program in which the area has been developed together with residents and operators between 2023 and -25. The city residents and operators have wanted to develop Haihara into an even more brilliant gem of the area and a place of community spirit. Efforts have been made to gradually realize these wishes, for example, in the form of new events.

We are now looking for an exhibition proposal for the summer of 2027 for the Manor at Haihara, that takes into account the community-oriented development of the Haihara Art Center. We hope to receive applications that take into account the participation of local residents. In selecting the exhibition, attention will be paid to artistic quality and the participatory elements of the proposal. The summer exhibition will last for approximately two months (from the end of June to mid-August). Rental prices have been set for the exhibition spaces, but will not charge the standard rental price of the Manor if an exhibition supports community spirit and participation.

Exhibition spaces

Culture House Laikku and Haihara Art Centre space photos, floor plans and technical information.

Gallery

The Gallery has a surface area of 226 m2 (11.7 m x 19.5 m). It has four movable exhibition walls (height 2,80 m, width 3,30 m, depth 0,50 m) and hanging rails on the stonewalls indicated on the floor plan.

Photos of the Gallery (Google Drive)

Studio

The Studio measures 96 m2 (11.9 m x 8.30 m). The Studio has two movable exhibition walls. The space can also be blacked out and is particularly suitable for video, media and light art.

Photos of the Studio (Google Drive)

Floor plan of the gallery space. — Floor plan of the Laikku gallery and studio (click to enlarge).

Culture House Laikku

Manor

All the walls of the main building are painted wallpaper (pale bluish). The rooms have exhibition rails on which you can mount cotton and iron wire or fishing line. In addition, (small) nails can be nailed to the walls and hooks can be hung from the ceiling. Electrical wires and cables can be run along the floor, but safety must be taken into account when attaching them. No holes may be drilled in the floor.

Photos of the Manor (Google Drive)

Stable

The walls of the ground floor of the Stable are mostly plastered and painted brick, which can be drilled and nailed with large nails. Some of the walls are painted hardboard. The exhibition spaces have rails on which steel cables can be installed. White hangers can also be used on the rails, on which cotton and iron wire or fishing line can be mounted. Hooks can be hung from the ceiling or from the dark ceiling beams.

The upstairs walls of the Stable are painted board, the rails and the hanging technique are the same as downstairs. In addition, small nails can be nailed to some of the walls. The long, sloping walls of the space have a hanging height of only 150 cm. The attic-like atmosphere of the exhibition space is particularly suited to the display of three-dimensional works.

Photos of the Stable (Google Drive)

Sculpture stands

Sculpture stands and av-equipment are available for joint use for both exhibition spaces (Manor and Stable). Please make sure availability before your exhibition (mention your need already in the exhibition application if possible).

Stands with all sides closed: 20x20x120 2pcs, 20x20x100 2pcs, 25x25x100 2pcs, 32x32x120 2pcs, 32x32x100 1pcs, 42x42x120 2pcs, 50x50x120 2pcs. Stands with other end open: 30x30x20 1pcs, 30x30x30 1pcs, 40x50x15 1pcs, 53x83x37 1pcs, 60x60x44 1pcs

The number of tools are limited, so for group exhibitions it is advisable to have your own tools for hanging.

Floor plan of the Manor. — Floor plan of the Manor (click to enlarge).

Floor plan of the Stable. — Floor plan of the Stable (click to enlarge).

Haihara Art Centre

Apply exhibition slot using the online application form during application period. Attatch an exhibition plan, supporting visual material and a curriculum vitae/bio.
The exhibitor is primarily responsible for the hanging and dismantling of the exhibition. The artist must be able to install the work himself/herself.
The exhibitor will have access to a limited number of tools, sculpture and equipment stands and presentation equipment. The need for these must be communicated already at the application and again in good time before the exhibition.
The exhibitor will be responsible for the transport of the works and any other related costs.
The exhibitor shall take out and bear the cost of insurance for the works.
The Public Cultural Services does not act as an intermediary and does not charge a commission of possible art sales. Works may be purchased directly from the artist.
The Public Cultural Services will take care of the cleaning and supervision of the exhibition space.
Graphic design and printing of exhibition posters will be carried out by The Public Cultural Services. The poster and the email invitation to the exhibition will be produced in accordance with the graphic guidelines of the The Public Cultural Services and the City of Tampere.
The exhibitor, in cooperation with The Public Cultural Services, will be responsible for producing the exhibition press release. The exhibitor prepares the written material for the exhibition (e.g. a list of works and curriculum vitae) together with The Public Cultural Services according to the graphic guidelines.
The Public Cultural Services will send out the email invitation according to its own mailing lists. The exhibitor can send the invitation to his/hers contacts.
The exhibitor is responsible for the opening arrangements of the exhibition.

Application guidelines

Proposals returned by the deadline will be accepted for the jury evaluation.

Please read the application instructions carefully and read the descriptions of the spaces. Only apply for spaces that are suitable for your exhibition. Fill in the application form carefully. Include supporting material, such as a CV, exhibition plan and visual material of planned works for exhibition. For a group exhibition, all artists must be listed in the application.

Selected exhibition applicants will be notified about the exhibition slot during the summer. Other applicants will be notified shortly thereafter.

To apply for an exhibition slot, please fill in the e-form (opens on 4th Feb)

We prefer digital applications. If you are unable to apply online and wish to complete a paper application form, please contact [email protected] for instructions. Please send or bring the printed application with attachments to:

Kulttuuritalo Laikku
"Näyttelyhaku"
Keskustori 4
FI-33100 Tampere

Paper applications must be received at Laikku on the deadline within the opening hours. Applicants should be aware of possible delays or loss of mail, which may result in us not receiving the application in time. Applications will not be returned.

The price list below shows the rental price for the premises in 2025. We reserve the right to change the prices for 2026: The price lists will be confirmed by the Culture and Leisure Committee of the City of Tampere at its November meeting.

Exhibition rents (2026)

Exhibition rents (2026)
Culture House	Space, floor area	Priority	Price per exhibition time (incl. VAT) / exhibition time
Laikku	Gallery, 226 m2	For all exhibitions	600 €
Laikku	Studio, 96 m2	Visual arts professionals, contemporary art	0 €
Haihara	Manor, 225 m2	Visual arts professionals	800 € (group of 1-7 persons) / 1300 € (group of 8-15 persons)
Haihara	Stable, 150m2	Associations, study groups and such	700 € (group of 1-7 persons) / 1200 € (group of 8-15 persons)

Exhibition selections

Our selection criteria include
• Artistic quality and professionalism of production. In the case of amateur groups, in addition to quality, we also emphasize, for example, the anniversary years of associations
• We strive to build a diverse exhibition calendar featuring different types of visual art
• At Laikku, we strive to find exhibitions for two adjacent spaces that complement each other, either thematically or visually.
• Suitability for schedules, the space applied for, and available technology per gallery

Our exhibition working group will review all applications (received by the end of the application period) in April-May. Further negotiations on schedules will be held with the first selected applicants, after which the working group will do the final exhibition calendar. After the decision, all applicants will be contacted. Our target schedule is to notify all applicants of the outcome by email during June.

The open call serves as the framework for the exhibition selection, but exhibitions outside the open call can also be included in the program through an invitation process.

We welcome applications from people of different ages and genders, as well as those belonging to linguistic, cultural, or other minorities.

Other exhibition spaces

The Public Cultural Services also has other exhibition spaces that are not included in this open call for exhibitions.

Exhibition time in the Lobby Gallery (Aulagalleria) of the Culture House Laikku is available all year round. The Lobby Gallery is not included in this annual open call, but you can ask The Public Cultural Services about its available times.

Other open exhibition spaces of the City of Tampere not included in this open call

Galleria Vivi in the Youth Culture Centre Monitoimitalo 13 is aimed at young artists aged 9-29. The space is run and managed by the Youth Services.

Most libraries have the possibility to organise exhibitions. For more information about the exhibition spaces in the city's libraries (in Finnish), please contact the libraries.

Irma Puttonen

Senior Coordinator

Phone:

050 553 8673

Email:

[email protected]

Merja Vihinen

Cultural worker