Throughout 2024, the museum at the corner of Senate Square hosted three temporary exhibitions: Sun Bodi – The Sweaty History of Gyms, dedicated to fitness culture; Places & Hoods – See Helsinki Anew, offering fresh and unique perspectives on the city; and M/S Baltic Queers, showcasing stories of LGBTQAI+ migrants in the Baltic region (open until March 2, 2025). A new summer exhibition will open a week before May Day, focusing on environmental responsibility, waste, and household garbage.
At Hakasalmi Villa on Mannerheimintie, a total of 42,392 visits were recorded in 2024. The A Glimpse of Helsinki – Volker von Bonin’s Photos exhibition showcased everyday life and cityscapes of Helsinki. The Glamour and Curtsy – Upstairs and Downstairs life exhibition, aimed at fans of period drama and manor aesthetics, will continue until the end of August 2025. In October, as the autumn nights grow darker, a new photography exhibition by Stefan Bremer – renowned for capturing Helsinki’s urban atmosphere – will open, depicting the city’s nightlife.
To mark the 150th anniversary of the Helsinki City Council, all Helsinki residents under the age of 20 will be granted free admission to Hakasalmi Villa starting February 1, 2025.
Across all its locations – including the City Museum, Hakasalmi Villa, the Tram Museum in Töölö, and the Fire Chief’s House in Kruununhaka – Helsinki City Museum welcomed a total of 429,327 visitors in 2024. The museum’s programs engaged young children through baby concerts and interactive theater performances, daycare groups explored the Children’s Town and Tram Museum, and primary school students learned about cultural environments in Senate Square while documenting the city through photography in the footsteps of Volker von Bonin. Service centers actively borrowed Memory Suitcases, including a newly introduced LGBTQAI+-themed suitcase designed for reminiscence sessions among gender and sexual minorities.
– Helsinki City Museum is a vibrant collection of five museums where everyone has the opportunity to fall in love with Helsinki. We are deeply connected to the everyday lives of city residents and tell the stories of Helsinki together with them. The museum also serves as an expert on urban transformation, a preserver of history, and a builder of a good life, says museum director Reetta Heiskanen.
The Workers’ Museum opens on Night of the Arts
The former Workers’ Housing Museum – now renamed the Workers’ Museum – will celebrate its grand opening on August 14 during the Night of the Arts. The museum’s updated interiors, touching personal stories from past residents, and immersive soundscapes of the era will offer a richer picture of working-class life in Helsinki. The Workers’ Museum is located in Vallila, right next to Linnanmäki amusement park.
