# Amos Rex

Amos Rex is an art museum named after the publisher and arts patron Amos Anderson and located in Lasipalatsi, on Mannerheimintie boulevard in Helsinki, Finland. It opened in 2018 and rapidly reached international popularity, attracting more than 10,000 visitors in a matter of weeks. It attracts about 250,000 visitors annually. Kieran Long has been the director since February 2024.

## History

In 2013, the museum announced plans to build a subterranean annex under the Lasipalatsi plaza, located near the museum's premises on Yrjönkatu. The annex was estimated to cost 50 million euros and to also use facilities above the ground in the Lasipalatsi building. The Helsinki City Board decided to reserve the plot for the museum in December 2013. The funding was provided by the Finnish-Swedish arts foundation Konstsamfundet. The museum plan was unanimously approved by the Helsinki City Council in May 2014 and the new annex was scheduled to open in 2017.
The new annex was designed by JKMM Architects, whose other works include the Turku Main Library and the Finnish pavilion at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.
The construction of the new museum started in January 2016 and it opened to the public in August 2018.

## Exhibitions

Massless, the first exhibition at the Amos Rex museum, was created by the Japanese collective teamLab. It consisted of a colourful, immersive interactive art exhibition. Viewers were encouraged to interact and explore with the surroundings, generating different visual results. Amos Rex holds approximately 3–4 exhibitions a year.
Exhibitions :
| Dates | Title | Artist(s) | Exhibition Description |
| August 30, 2018 – January 6, 2019 | Massless | teamLab | An interactive, immersive exhibition by the Japanese 500-member art collective teamLab, where interactive videos were projected onto the walls. |
| February 8, 2019 – May 19, 2019 | Life Line | René Magritte | The exhibition presented the works of the renowned Surrealist René Magritte for the first time in Finland. |
| March 3, 2019 – May 19, 2019 | Studio Drift | Lonneke Gordijn and Ralph Nauta | The exhibition featured works by Studio Drift, with the most notable piece being Drifter, a floating concrete cube. |
| June 19, 2018 – September 8, 2019 | Ars Fennica 2019 | Petri Ala-Maunus, Miriam Bäckström, Ragnar Kjartansson, Aurora Reinhard, and Egill Sæbjörnsson | The exhibition showcased works by the five finalists of the Ars Fennica Prize. |
| October 10, 2019 – January 12, 2020 | Birger Carlstedt | Birger Carlstedt | The exhibition presented the life’s work of Carlstedt, including a reconstructed café designed by the artist, which was operational. |
| February 12, 2020 – August 23, 2020 | Generation 2020 | Group exhibition, 80 young artists | A triennial exhibition held every three years showcasing works by artists aged 15–23. |
| October 9, 2020 – March 21, 2021 | Egypt of Glory | Ancient artifacts from Egypt, dating back up to 6000 years. | The exhibition highlighted Egyptian culture, featuring mummies and created in collaboration with the Italian Museo Egizio. |
| May 12, 2021 – August 22, 2021 | Raija Malka & Kaija Saariaho: Blick | Raija Malka & Kaija Saariaho | |
| May 12, 2021 – September 5, 2021 | Studio Exhibition: Between us | Karoliina Hellberg, Tero Kuitunen, and Raimo Saarinen | |
| September 22, 2021 – February 27, 2022 | Bill Viola: Inner Journey | Bill Viola | |
| April 2, 2022 – August 21, 2022 | The Subterranean | Group exhibition, 62 international artists | |
| May 7, 2022 – September 4, 2022 | Tadashi Kawamata: The Nest | Tadashi Kawamata | |
| September 21, 2022 – February 26, 2023 | Hans Op de Beeck: The Quiet Parade | Hans Op de Beeck | |
| March 29, 2023 – August 20, 2023 | Generation 2023 | Group exhibition | A triennial exhibition showcasing works by artists aged 15–23. |
| September 27, 2023 – February 25, 2024 | Ryoji Ikeda | Ryoji Ikeda | |
| March 27, 2024 – September 8, 2024 | I feel, for now - Collection Exhibition | Various artists | |
| March 27, 2024 – September 8, 2024 | Josefina Nelimarkka: The Cloud of Un/knowing | Josefina Nelimarkka | |
| April 29, 2024 – October 20, 2024 | Kim Simonsson: Moss Giants | Kim Simonsson | |
| October 9, 2024 – March 2, 2025 | Larissa Sansour | Larissa Sansour | |
| April 2, 2025 – August 31, 2025 | Anna Estarriola: Staged Circumstances and Piles of Things | Anna Estarriola | |
| April 2, 2025 – August 31, 2025 | Enni-Kukka Tuomala: Expanding Empathies | Enni-Kukka Tuomala | |
| October 8, 2025 – March 29, 2026 | Leandro Erlich | Leandro Erlich | |

## Amos Anderson Art Museum, 1965-2017

The Amos Anderson Art Museum (Finnish: Amos Andersonin taidemuseo, Swedish: Amos Andersons konstmuseum) is an art museum in Helsinki. It is the largest private art museum in Finland. The museum is currently situated on Yrjönkatu, with a subterranean annex, known as Amos Rex, built beneath Lasipalatsi.

### History

The museum was founded by Amos Anderson, the owner of the Swedish-language Hufvudstadsbladet newspaper and a patron of the arts. In 1913, Anderson commissioned architects W. G. Palmqvist and Einar Sjöström to design a building on Yrjönkatu. The building would function as both Anderson's private living quarters and office space for his businesses. After Anderson's death in 1961, the building was converted into a museum, which opened in 1965. As of early 2019, Luckan, a Konstsamundet financed center for Finland Swedish culture, moved to the Yrjönkatu building previously used by the museum.

### Collections and exhibitions

The Amos Anderson Art Museum's collections include primarily 20th-century art, with some of the oldest works originally belonging to Amos Anderson's personal collection. The museum has paintings by Francesco Bassano (Adoration of the Magi), Paul Signac, Louis Valtat, Roger Fry, Alfred Finch (View of Fiesöle), Ragnar Ekelund, Magnus Enckell, Eero Nelimarkka, Tyko Sallinen, Tove Jansson (Fantasy), and the Swedish painter Palm. In its acquisitions, the museum concentrates on contemporary art.
The museum arranges 8–12 exhibitions a year.