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Introduction – Workshops – Guided tours – History – Contact us

Art Center Järvilinna is a vibrant cultural center in a beautiful historic environment.

The Art Center hosts exhibitions and events throughout the year. Artist of many fields live and work in Järvilinna. Their workshops are often open for guests to visit. Järvilinna’s artists organize art courses for groups, as well as hold open workshops on regular weekdays.

The Art Centre has an International Residency, which hosts artists from around the world. If you’d like to see more info about the residency, click here.

Järvilinna’s main building Huvila holds art exhibitions, which are open throughout the year:
In winter: Wednesday–Sunday 12pm–5pm
In summer: Tuesday–Sunday 12pm–6pm

Järvilinna is a great location to enjoy the outdoors. In Järvilinna’s garden area are many sculptures and artworks. It also holds the oldest steam paddle boat ”Lahtis” which sailed Päijänne for many years. Leaving from the Art Center are beautiful outdoor routes for nature lovers.

Workshops and courses

Järvilinna’s artist are open to arrange art courses for groups. You can contact the artists directly for information about the courses they offer. You can find all the artist’s contact information here.

There are open workshops, which anyone can attend without signing up. Below you can find the information of the current open workshops.

Ceramics workshop

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Tuesdays 15pm – 20pm

The open ceramics workshop is suitable for people of all ages and skill levels. A wide range of objects and styles can be made in the workshop. The workshop operates in the red Toukola building. Mainly for independent working. There is also an instructor at the shop to guide and assist when needed.

Fee 5 € / hour. Includes raw firing in a kiln for an object smaller than a liter. Fee for materials according to use: Clay 3€ /kg and kiln starting 5€ /burn. Note, that making an object requires giving it time to dry, so the full process takes several weeks.

Ceramics instructor and workshop contact:
Kaisu Hirvonen
tel. 050 402 9063
meerihevonen@gmail.com

Metal workshop

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Wednesdays 16pm – 20pm

The open metal workshop is located right next to the Art Centers parking lot. Artist Erkki Liukkonen’s small red workshop has open doors for independent work every Wednesday. He also guides and gives instructions in different metal works. In the workshop, you can cast various metals, weld, solder and forge.

Hourly rate 2.50 € / hour + materials

Metals instructor and workshop contact:
Erkki Liukkonen
tel. 0400 901 458
valumestari@gmail.com

Guided tours

You can book a guided tours for the Art Center Järvilinna’s exhibitions, historic surroundings or the artist’s workshops. With our guides you can learn about the history of Järvilinna, delve into the art we offer and visit the artists’ studios. See the tours we offer below and make a reservation by sending an e-mail to taidekeskus.jarvilinna@gmail.com.
We currently accept payments in cash or by invoice.

General tour of the Järvilinna Art Center Järvilinna’s exhibitions and history

Järvilinna currently functions as an art center, but during its more than a hundred-year history it has experienced many stages from a judges home to a reformatory school, from a special education institution to todays art center. During the general tour, the group will hear of the current exhibitions and also learn some of the history of the Art Center Järvilinna.

Duration and price: 1h 60€, 1.5h 90€
For groups of max. 25 persons
Languages: Finnish, English, Russian, Japanese, Spanish

Immerse yourself in art in Järvilinna

Art Center Järvilinna offers exhibitions in many different styles and fields of art. You can book a guide for a group for the art on displayed at the Art Center Järvilinna. In the tour you will hear the interesting backgrounds from the current art exhibitions. With the help of the guide, art opens up in new ways, as the listener becomes aware of the ways in which artists work and details that as an independent viewer might not be able to notice. The tour is perfect for groups who want to deepen their art experience and learn something new about the current art world.

Duration and price: 1h 60€, 1.5h 90€
For groups of max. 25 persons
Languages: Finnish, English, Russian, Japanese, Spanish
The tour takes place in the main building, second floor gallery facilities have to be reached by stairs.

The thousand stories of Järvilinna

During its more than 100-year history, Järvilinna has been inhabited by colorful characters and has served important tasks as part of Central Finnish society. You can book a guided tour where you will hear the history of Järvilinna, the stories of it’s residents from a local judge’s dream to a reformatory school for boys, as well as the recent history of the art center. During the guided tour the group can sit in the historic courtroom of the main building, so the tour is also suitable for people with limited mobility.

Duration and price: 1h 60€, 1.5h 90€
For groups of max. 25 persons
Languages: Finnish, English, Russian, Japanese, Spanish
The tour takes place in the main building of the villa.

Historical courtyard and artists workshops

Do you want a comprehensive mostly outdoors tour of the Järvilinna courtyard area and visit some of the artist’s studios? On this tour the group explores Järvilinna by walking through the courtyard, hearing about the historical stages of the place, seeing the artworks of the outside garden and visiting a few studios of working artists.

Duration and price: 1h 60€, 1.5h 90€
For groups of max. 25 persons
Languages: Finnish, English, Russian, Japanese, Spanish
The tour takes place in Järvilinna’s courtyard and in the present artist’s studios.

History

Järvilinna was originally built as a home for judge Karl Johan Hjelt and his family in 1891. The main building, today called Huvila, is build following traditional architecture form Finland and Central-Europe, and it encompasses many of the neoclassical styles of the late 1800’s. Judge Hjelt and his family were a well respected part of the Central-Finnish society. The judge would hold court in his home and (weather permitting) front garden. After Karl Johan’s death in 1909 his family continued to reside at Järvilinna, until the widow Hanna Charlotta and their daughters decided to auction it off in 1916.

Through the tough years of Finlands newly acquired independence and the following civil war, Järvilinna remained in private ownership. The new nation needed to build, among other things, a child welfare system. Järvilinna became state property in 1920, when it started to serve as a reception home and reformatory school for young boys ages 8-16. These were young men who were placed in the states care when it was thought their families could not care for them or raise them to be a productive part of the society. 25 boys would live in Järvilinna at a time, after which some would be placed into different reformatory schools, foster homes or even the prison system. Järvilinna would often be the first place these youngsters would go after being taken from their homes. Life in Järvilinna was tough for the children, as many had behavioral problems and difficulty conforming to the schools routines. As the child welfare system developed, so did the teaching methods in Järvilinna. Spankings and other ways of strict discipline got replaced with more understanding of the boys backgrounds and issues. It wasn’t all bad in Järvilinna: The nature, nearby lake and enthusiastic faculty offered a chance to ski, swim, play and pursue many different hobbies and skills. Often the boys were too tired to try running away after a long workday. Järvilinna was also one of the first establishments in Finland where the arriving children were evaluated through different types of cognitive testing. The Järvilinna reception home and reformatory school closed it’s doors in 1969, when if was dissolved into other local children’s homes. All-in-all almost 5000 boys lived in Järvilinna.

After the boys home Järvilinna served as a residency building for the workes of nearby Vihravuori ammuniton factory. In the 1980’s the premises were thoroughly renovated and it once more became a school, this time for inclusive and special education. The special education school moved location in 2006 and Järvilinna became empty.

After a short vacancy, Järvilinna was purchased by Kauko Sorjonen Foundation in 2008. The foundation renovated some of the old buildings into artists’ work and living spaces and Art Center Järvilinna was born. Today the main building of the Art Center guests can explore changing exhibitions and enjoy the beautiful historical architecture, and its great location next to lake Leppävesi.

Contact us

Here’s how to contact us for more information about Järvilinna Art Center!

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