Museum Centre Vapriikki: The World of Fairy Tales at Vapriikki

The exhibition "Once Upon a Time: The Story of the Origins of Fairy Tales" opened on April 28th at Museum Centre Vapriikki in Tampere, Finland. The exhibition features familiar, and also unfamiliar, fairy tales from Finland, Europe and beyond seven seas.

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The enchanted forest in the exhibition space takes visitors on a journey through the world of fairy tales, full of adventures, wonders and challenges. Visitors follow in the footsteps of the heroes and heroines of the stories, exploring different times and places and discovering the universal themes and messages hidden within the tales.

Visitors can relax listening to fairy tales under giant mushrooms, challenge themselves like a true hero, or delve into the history and research of fairy tales.

- Some of the well-known fairy tales in Finland, such as Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, are hundreds of years old. There are numerous versions of these tales told in different parts of the world, says researcher Hanna Samola from the Tampere University.
- Some of these tales have their roots in Middle Eastern storytelling traditions, while an early version of the Cinderella tale can be found in a Chinese folktale.

The enchanted forest features an oriental market and treasure chamber, prince and princes, and a dragon that visitors can defeat. Visitors can even create their own fairy tales with a story generator, choosing whether to end the tale happily or tragically.

The exhibition offers a highly experiential journey, with familiar fairy tale characters providing joy for both adults and children.

- We dive deep into the origins of fairy tales, exploring how stories were told in the past, the meanings behind the symbols in the stories, and how these familiar tales have evolved over time, says Marjo Meriluoto, Head of Exhibitions.

The exhibition features a large collection of Finnish fairy tales catalogued in the archives of the Finnish Literature Society, as well as fairy tale-related objects from the Estonian National Museum, Tampere Historical Museums, The Finnish Institute for Children’s Literature, and private collections.

Produced by the Estonian National Museum, the exhibition has been adapted to suit Finnish fairy tale traditions. The collaboration involved filmmakers, folklorists, literary researchers, animators and illustrators.

The exhibition is open from April 28th, 2023, to March 10th, 2024, at Museum Centre Vapriikki.

Vapriikki.fi

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Contact information

More information:
Head of Exhibitions, Marjo Meriluoto, +358 40 732 3745