Futuromania at EMMA Espoo Museum of Modern Art looks at the bold visions of the future dreamed up by classic Finnish designers over half a century ago. How do their utopian ideas about boundless free time and unlimited resources match up with the reality of today? Those utopian ideas which were launched in the 1950s and 1960s.
Many Finnish designers are brought to the podium. Designers like Kaija Aarikka, Aarne Ervi, Vuokko Eskolin-Nurmesniemi, Antti Nurmesniemi, Armi Ratia, Aarno Ruusuvuori, Matti Suuronen and Tapio Wirkkala. Aamu Song and Johan Olin (Company) complement the exhibition with a new participatory project. The exhibition is a part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Futuro house at Exhibition Centre WeeGee.
The exhibition presents new perspectives on Matti Suuronen’s classic futuristic home, the Futuro, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The Futuro will feature alongside Suuronen’s other buildings from the Casa Finlandia series. Plastic was also Aarne Ervi’s chosen material for his Home of Tomorrow (1955).
Other highlights include a 3D model of Tapio Wirkkala’s entry for the City of the Future 2000 competition at the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair. Wirkkala visualized his future city as a string of sculptural residential blocks interconnected by an electric-powered commuter monorail.
The exhibition also introduces Armi Ratia’s philosophy of future living, which found expression in the buildings designed by Aarno Ruusuvuori for Marimekko village Marikylä. All told, Futuromania provides a comprehensive summary of modernist visions of future lifestyles and technologies.
Futuromania – Designing Future Living 6.6.2018–17.2.2019 at EMMA Espoo Museum of Modern Art
Photos: EMMA Espoo Museum of Modern Art
