Turku’s WAM reopens with Sabrina Ratté’s basement exhibition

Turku’s contemporary art museum WAM will reopen on Saturday, October 31, after a two-year renovation, Yle reports. The museum, formerly known as the Wäinö Aaltonen Museum, has been closed since summer 2024.

The reopening features Canadian media artist Sabrina Ratté’s exhibition Web of Wyrd, which transforms the museum’s long-dormant basement with large, partly interactive wall projections. Her works combine computer animation, 3D scanning, artificial intelligence and an analogue video synthesiser.

The exhibition brings together images of natural beauty and dystopian futures, examining human impact on the planet and the relationship between digital and material realities. Ratté also drew inspiration from Turku, including its forests and archipelago. She said she collected fallen pieces of wood during a visit to the city.

The renovation has also introduced WAMx, a space intended to connect artists and audiences. Its exhibitions and programme will change more frequently than those in the rest of the museum, and the space is equipped for activities including dance and theatre.

The first WAMx exhibition is a community art project by photographer Kati Rapia and visual artist Ilona Valkonen. The museum will also display works by Wäinö Aaltonen and other key pieces from its collection, spanning from the museum’s construction in the 1960s to the present day.

WAM’s reopening adds to Turku’s cultural waterfront, alongside the Fuuga concert hall, which opened earlier this week, and the city theatre. Opening-weekend events include short guided tours, a workshop and a meeting with Ratté.