In Touch

Does art calm a restless mind? Can art, made by hand, touched and touching, help its viewer to delve into their own emotions and feel a sense of presence?

In Touch (Kosketuksissa) – the Art of Concentration, presents four experts of material-based art, each with a refreshing touch in tradition. The Kosketuksissa collective uses ceramics, wood and textiles, cultivating intuition and touching materials. The artists are united by thinking with their hands, long creative processes and a search for connection with nature.

The exhibition focuses on the dignity of concentration. Neuroscientists have expressed concern about the general decline in the ability to concentrate and the harmful effects of multitasking. Nurturing the ability to concentrate is of utmost importance in the work of artists and in society in general, as we suffer from being constantly bombarded with information.

The knowledge of material and concentration are central in the work of these artists. Tuuli Autio uses an axe to carve wood while listening to it, and Tiia Matikainen shapes the surface of clay by incising, and draws on it by scratching. Soile Hovila wove an 11-m² tapestry for three years, and Melissa Sammalvaara tied 10,000 tapestry knots by hand for just one work.

Art calls us to be present and in touch with the present moment, other people and with ourselves. The various natural materials of the works and the skilfully shaped surfaces of the sculptures and textiles invite touch. On the top floor of the museum, you can explore the works by touching and, for example, by walking barefoot on top of a wooden relief path.

Art educator Olli Silvennoinen’s video installation gives the viewer an insight into how the works were created. The meditative video installation depicts thinking hands and bodily interaction with materials. The rhythmic movement of tools and hands shape the natural materials little by little into the works of art in this exhibition. The video installation can be seen in Kino-Poikilo for the duration of the exhibition.

The artists were supported by the Arts Promotion Centre Finland, the Central Fund of the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Häme and Kymenlaakso Regional Funds, the Alfred Kordelin Foundation, and the Finnish Heritage Agency.

Plan your museum visit Visit Poikilo – Poikilo

Tiia Matikainen, Stump, 2024, ceramics. Photo Pasi Mälkiä. Melissa Sammalvaara, Deadwood, 2024, Tapestry, detail. Photo Melissa Sammalvaara. Tuuli Autio, Tuntu 17, 2025, wood relief, aspen. Photo Tuuli Autio. Soile Hovila, Ataraxia, 2020–2023, tapestry, left section. Photo Henna Mitrunen.