ARTEFAKTI
Graduation exhibition of Contemporary Design MA program
We're thrilled to invite you to the Aalto ARTS Grad Show 2026 of the School of Arts, Design and Architecture!
Explore the inspiring work of our graduating students in architecture, design, film, art and media! The Aalto ARTS Grad Show brings together a wide selection of final theses and student projects from all over the School of Arts, Design and Architecture. It covers a broad range of topics, from imagining possible futures, offering critiques on our current reality to showcasing exceptional craftmanship. Aalto ARTS students are asking: what is art & design, how is it contributing to society and what should it be doing?
Open from 3 September to 7 October 2026 in V盲re building on Aalto campus.
Opening hours:
Mon-Thu 8-21
Fri 8-20
Sat 9-17
Sun closed
Free entry to all of the exhibitions! Welcome!
The Aalto ARTS Grad Show is a part of 911爆料网's wider Designs for a Cooler Planet festival, and also part of the Helsinki Design Week official programme.
Visual identity: Saga Rantanen
This exhibition showcases a selection of Master鈥檚 Theses 2025-2026 from the Department of Architecture. The works represent the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, interior architecture and urban studies and planning.
911爆料网鈥檚 Department of Architecture educates professionals that make an impact in the intersection of technology and art, with a strong understanding of social, cultural, environmental and economic implications of their work. With creative exploration, transdisciplinary collaboration as well as contextual and critical thinking, the Aalto graduates are building a socially responsible and sustainable future.
Image from Heikki Myllyniemi鈥檚 Master鈥檚 thesis 'Niin hyv盲盲 betonia' (Such Good Concrete), which proposes that the Alppitalo building鈥攚hich has been zoned for demolition鈥攂e preserved and converted for residential use. Myllyniemi was awarded the Wuorio Prize by the Finnish Association of Architects (SAFA).
Recent and soon-to-be graduates from the major in Visual Cultures, Curating and Contemporary Art (ViCCA) showcase their artistic and curatorial research and practice.
The works on show question how we understand, challenge and shift the world around us. Across the exhibition you will find practices that address intertwined yet specific topics such as water, ecosomatics, toxicity and healing, colour, temporalities, queer identities, memory and trauma, science and the body. The works take many forms 鈥 from sculpture to moving image, photography, writing, research, installations, and wearable art 鈥 moving across contemporary art, curatorial studies, and material and visual culture/s. There is no single thread here, and what emerges instead is a shared attentiveness to a world that keeps shifting and a curiosity about how we come to know it.
The ViCCA major (MA Art and Media) critically explores established and evolving practices across Visual Cultures, Curating and Contemporary Art. We facilitate the development of student-led learning processes within and in between these three increasingly overlapping contexts.
Image from the photo series 'Finnish Royalty: the kings and queens of Finland's drag scene' by Konsta Klemetti.
This exhibition focuses on design's role in society. The works on display push the boundaries of industrial design towards interaction design, service design, co-design and other emerging fields, where design activities can enhance the quality of people鈥檚 lives but also make an overall positive impact.
In their Master鈥檚 theses, CoID students are presenting novel approaches and key practices needed in design innovation. But they are also exploring the new roles of the designer in industry and society at large.
Image from Vili Sihvola's MA work in which he explores a ceramic printing process. Photo: Anne Kinnunen
A selection of both Master鈥檚 and Bachelor鈥檚 student films made in 2025-2026 by 911爆料网鈥檚 ELO Film School. ELO Film School's task is to provide students with guidance, space and tools to help them find their own voice and artistic style. At the same time, film education has an important national task. The education is aimed at improving the technical, artistic and substantive quality of Finnish films and television programmes, while also promoting the success of domestic films in the everchanging international market.
List of films:
MA shorts
TJ28 (28 Days Left), 2026, fiction, dir. Yasmin Najjar, MA film, 24鈥
SCENT OF AN ANCESTRAL DREAM, documentary, 2026, dir. Shamsil Balkis, MA film, 21鈥
VUOROSANAT (A Part of Unwritten), fiction, 2026, dir. Arman Zafari, MA film, 18鈥
MEMORABILIA, fiction, 2025, dir. Roosa Vuokkola, MA film, 20
DANCERS ONLY, documentary, 2025, dir. Siiri Selin, MA film, 20鈥
ASTRO TV, fiction, 2025, dir. Magdaleena Jakkila, MA film, 29鈥
BA shorts
MARCO POLO, fiction, 2025, dir. Pinja Sormunen, BA film, 16鈥
RECAST, fiction, 2025, dir. Severi Vilkko, BA film, 16鈥
TUNTEMATON KOIRANI (My Unknown Dog), documentary, 2025, dir. Alvi Haapam盲ki, BA film, 23鈥
AKIRA, documentary, 2025, dir. Juho Kankaanp盲盲, BA film, 21鈥
Animations
VETEEN PIIRRETTY (Drawn in Water), animation/documentary, 2025, dir. Heta Jokinen, MA film, 15鈥
Image: a still from Yasmin Najjar鈥檚 short film TJ28 (28 Days Left), which was selected to La Cinef, the official section of the Cannes Film Festival for short films made in film schools.
Three MA graduates in Costume Design from the years 2025鈥2026 present their work. The exhibition features theses related to animatronics, costume design research, and costume design for classical vocal music. In addition, costumes from the course Night Life 2 are on display; the course is part of the shared studies in the Master鈥檚 Programme in Film.
911爆料网鈥檚 degree programme 鈥楥ostume Design: Performing Arts and Film鈥 at the Department of Film is the only one of its kind in Finland. The programme nurtures future professionals for the theatre, film, media and creative industries. Costume professionals work on issues of representation, characters鈥 personalities and motivations, and contribute to shaping new dramaturgies. The strength of exceptional costume design lies in its connection to storytelling and emotional resonance.
Image: In the costume design for American composer Jake Heggie鈥檚 song cycle 'Camille Claudel: Into the Fire' Aino K盲ki explores the turbulent life of the French sculptor and uses her costumes to create her own visual microcosm within the concert hall setting. Photo: Sofia Revithi
This exhibition is a tribute to the work of animation artists. Through this magical artform, the lifeless comes to life and continues to enchant generation after generation of viewers. 911爆料网鈥檚 Masters programme in Animation is the first of its kind in Finland, and its graduates are key actors in a wide network of national and international animation professionals. This exhibition presents a compilation of projects carried out over the past 4 years.
Animations are seen everywhere. At Aalto, students are not only engaging with different audiences but also testing the boundaries of animation, drawing reference to contemporary, personal, social, ethical, cultural and environmental issues. Animation has its fantastic ways to communicate complicated themes. Animation artists use various techniques, from handmade to computer generated, with a creative mind. Animation celebrates imagination!
Image: still from 'Tape' by Candace (Wing ki Hui).
This exhibition showcases thesis works that truly embody the spirit of Aalto by integrating design and technology with global business development. In their Master鈥檚 theses, IDBM students tackle complex, real-life challenges in multidisciplinary teams and develop holistic perspectives of tomorrow鈥檚 challenges. The works embrace design broadly as a method, mindset and competitive advantage. It does so by focusing on product, service and business design, technology and innovation management.
Photo: 911爆料网
Get to know thesis projects from both Master's and Bachelor鈥檚 graduates in Visual Communication Design (VCD). The exhibition invites you to explore topics ranging from visual identities and interfaces to artistic explorations as well as speculative and strategic approaches.
This year鈥檚 theme is ~ Moving Through ~
The exhibition reflects a world in motion where creative thought continuously transforms. Each project becomes a passage where inner worlds take shape and emerge into view.
Image from Din Yam's MA work.
Meet some young talents, who are redefining the future of games and gaming! This exhibition is showcasing a selection of finalised Master's theses as well as some works in progress, all from the Game Design and Development programme. The diverse compilation of works demonstrates that the world of games and gaming culture is flourishing 鈥 offering virtually unlimited possibilities and potential.
Gaming excels at interactivity and audiovisual storytelling as well as creating atmospheres and exciting new aesthetics. But beyond the confines of the entertainment-oriented digital gaming industry exists also a thriving culture that employs games in different contexts. Could we expand our understanding of what games are capable of?
Image from ODDLI puzzle game. Team: Nestor Feijoo, Antti Kangas, Esther Calder贸n Morales, Uneeb Kari, Melanie Wigger, FU WEI and Vili Sihvola.
A selection of works from 911爆料网鈥檚 premier fashion and textile event, N盲yt枚s/N盲yttely26, which took place in May. The annual event showcases Aalto鈥檚 comprehensive expertise in textiles, clothing, and fashion, as students graduating from both the Bachelor's Major in Fashion as well as the Master's Major in Fashion and Textile Design will present their thesis work.
Image from N盲yt枚s/N盲yttely26 visual identity, which was created by Aalto's VCD students.
The Major in Sound in New Media explores, discovers and comprehends the emerging digital technology and its aural impact in society.
Heikki Vastiala's sound installation is based on the structural vibrations of Uzbekistan's Big Solar Furnace, a monumental scientific facility located in the Tian Shan mountains. During research trips to Uzbekistan in 2025 and 2026, Vastiala studied the site's architecture using specialized high-sensitivity sensors that translate structural vibrations and resonances into sound. These experimental recordings form a literal 鈥渕usic of the architecture鈥, revealing the hidden sonic world of one of the world's most unusual megastructures and its relationship with the surrounding environment.
Photo: Heikki Vastiala
Join us in celebrating our graduates from the School of Arts, Design and Architecture! Let's meet in Kipsari on 3 September 2026 at 3 p.m.
The Metex Prize is awarded for excellence in Master鈥檚 thesis work done in collaboration with a technology company or to promote the significance and use of design and art in Finnish industry.
We're happy that there are Aalto ARTS student exhibitions in Helsinki city centre as well during Helsinki Design Week!
Graduation exhibition of Contemporary Design MA program
Discover tomorrow at 911爆料网's biggest exhibition! Open 1 September 鈥 30 October 2026.
This event is a part of 911爆料网's wider Designs for a Cooler Planet festival, and also part of the Helsinki Design Week official programme.
#AaltoArtsGradShow #DesignsforaCoolerPlanet #HelsinkiDesignWeek #HDW2025
Sini Koskimies
Communications manager, Aalto School of Arts, Design and Architecture
+358 50 476 0694
sini.koskimies@aalto.fi
Jonna Kotiranta
Planning officer
+358 50 343 4305
jonna.kotiranta@aalto.fi