Moomin Adventure opening at the Maritime Museum of Finland makes you think about the big questions in life

The Courage, Freedom, Love! exhibition opening at the Maritime Museum of Finland will offer a magical adventure into the way of life and philosophy of the Moomins. 

In this experience-rich exhibition, visitors will travel through the exhibition halls, having fun and even exciting encounters with the familiar Moomin characters. The exhibition is intended for people of all ages, and invites the youngest visitors to play and discover new things.  

The adventure will take the visitors through a dark forest towards the peaceful Moominvalley. Along the way, they will take a rest on a rocky beach, dive into the Hobgoblin’s hat, climb through a jungle, awaken in the silence of Moominland Midwinter and receive an invitation to an enchanting party at the Floating Theatre. The exhibition will have a nostalgic, comforting and joyful feel to it. 

Celebration of 80 years 

In 2025, it will be 80 years since the first Moomin story – The Moomins and the Great Flood (Småtrollen och den stora översvämningen) was published. 

Even after all these decades, the art and the warm humour of the Moomin stories speak to readers of all ages all around the world. They also reflect many of the values we commonly share today: friendship, love, respect for nature, love of adventure, equality, tolerance, freedom and courage. 

The illustrations and quotations of the exhibition are based on original works by Tove Jansson. The artistic realisation and exhibition architecture have been designed by artist Alexander Reichstein.  

The exhibition showcased at the Maritime Museum of Finland was produced by the National Museum of Finland together with Moomin Characters Oy Ltd. It is based on an exhibition on display at the National Museum in 2020–2021. At the time, the many restrictions in place during the Covid-19 pandemic limited the exhibition experience. Now, the exhibition can be experienced as adapted to the exhibition premises of the Maritime Museum of Finland. 

Tove Jansson’s love for the sea 

For Jansson, the sea and its storms were all a big adventure. They were an endless source of inspiration for her and came up in Jansson’s stories and art. This continued until Jansson was in her 70s.  

“And during the last summer, something unforgivable happened; I started to fear the sea. The big waves no longer meant adventure, only fear and worry over the boat and all the other boats that travel the sea in bad weather,” wrote Jansson in her book Anteckningar från en ö (‘Notes from an island’, 1996). 

The exhibition experience is complemented by the Victoria boat, which was owned by Tove Jansson and her partner Tuulikki Pietilä and which is part of the collection of the Maritime Museum of Finland. The couple travelled to their beloved summer cottage on Klovharu island in this boat – up until Jansson started to fear the sea she used to love.

Event for friends of the Moomin to feature Moomintroll and Little My 

Visitors to the museum can come together for a shared event for all friends of Moomin on opening Sunday for the Courage, Freedom, Love! exhibition on 16 February from 10.00 to 17.00 at the Maritime Museum of Finland. The programme caters to people of all ages. 

Starting at 12 o'clock, you can watch the animation based on Tove Jansson's The Book about Moomin, Mymble and Little My in the auditorium. From 13.00 to 15.00, you can make crafts in the friendship bracelet workshop organised by the children’s culture centre in Kotka.  

The most anticipated moments of the day will certainly come between 12.30 and 13.00 and between 14.00 and 14.30 when you will have the opportunity to meet Moomintroll and Little My together with others. 

All of the exhibitions of the Maritime Museum of Finland and Kymenlaakso Museum are open all day at Maritime Centre Vellamo. Free entry to children under 18, adults €15/10/Museum card/Kaikukortti. 

Courage, Freedom, Love! A Moomin Adventure will be open at The Maritime Museum of Finland in Kotka 14 February 2025–7 March 2027. The Maritime Museum of Finland is one of the museum sites of The National Museum of Finland, located in Maritime Centre Vellamo.