Helsingin juhlaviikot (Helsinki Festival) is an annual arts festival that brightens up the capital city every August, and it climaxes on Taiteiden yö (Night of the Arts) when the streets of Helsinki are filled with music, dance, performance art, poetry, and cinema. A walk around the city on Night of the Arts is truly a treat for the senses, and an affordable and easily accessible way to experience different forms of art. It also offers great venues for budding artists such as musicians, photographers, and writers. This year I brought my camera with me on my tour around the city that had turned into an enormous stage for various interesting performances and exhibitions, and decided to share a few shots with you guys!
Annantalo (Annankatu 30)
An outdoor screening of the Japanese animation film Paprika (2006) by Satoshi Kon. The show time was 10:30pm, and the night was getting chilly, but the viewers were offered free blankets and popcorn.
Vanha Kirkkopuisto (Bulevardi)
An installation by Isabella Chydenius called ”Future Forest”. The plastic-covered trees and ghostly-looking ”lampshades” turned the park into a dream-like environment. Passers-by stepped inside the hanging plastic cylinders with their friends or significant others – a great example of the way Night of the Arts is all about getting ordinary people involved and immersed in arts by bringing it to everyday locations.
Sokos (Mannerheimintie 9)
A light installation in the display window of Sokos. A motion detector between the screen and the viewer enabled him/her to create movement on the installation, which resulted in quite funny sights of people relentlessly waiving their hands around in front of a giant screen of splashing colors! When else do you get to see that on Mansku?
For more information, go to the official page for Helsinki Festival.
Did you see something cool on Night of the Arts this year and would like to share it with us? Leave a comment!