News / Welcome to the Masters of Aalto festival to get a glimpse of the future’s professionals
09.05.2012
Masters of Aalto is now open! At the MoA’12 festival Aalto University professionals will showcase their open-minded approaches to the challenges we will face in the future during an exhibition and over 30 individual events. MoA’12 will be open in Jätkäsaari, Helsinki from 9 May to 3 June. The festival features Master’s thesis projects by over one hundred graduates.
MoA’12, which has expanded to include the entire Aalto University, is a month-long exhibition and stage centered around the theme Our Future is (a) Present. The professionals of the future projects all have one thing in common, a desire to create a better, fairer and more smoothly functioning world.
The students’ projects examine a multitude of different matters, such as the kinds of architectural solutions that would support Finland’s role as mediator of peace, how a bicycle can be built from recycled materials and how knitwear can be used as a user interface. The Kanto sauna is a Master’s thesis project that allows the public to bathe in a sauna on the grounds of the harbour warehouse every Saturday afternoon.
In addition to being an introduction of recent graduates, MoA’12 is also a pedagogical entity. From its start to end MoA’12 is a reflection of the students that put it together. Experts from Aalto University’s different fields have taken part in putting together the graphics and visuals, the architecture and the marketing for MoA.
The location of the festival is a 100-year-old harbour warehouse designed by Lars Sonck. However, before the location could be used, the students responsible for the architecture needed to construct toilet facilities.
The MoA’12 exhibition is divided into four themes: Arcadia and Utopia, New Spaces, Daily Life, as well as Shearing Beauty, Memories, Dreams and Images. Maaretta Jaukkuri, a Professor for the Art and Common Space programme at the NTNU University in Trondheim acts as the curator of the exhibition.
− I hope that visitors will come to see something that is telling of the present and the worries, but also the opportunities we all share. These types of experiences make us more sensitive to beauty and hope, Ms. Jaukkuri said.
MoA'12 offers dozens of events
In May, MoA also invites visitors to participate in public events, seminars, film screenings and workshops. The subjects of these events shall centre on Aalto University’s fields of expertise ranging from nautical technology to urban planning and from sustainable development to change management. The MoA’12 programme will include the first ever TEDxAalto event on 12 May as well as the SLAM science debate on Wednesday 16 May. All events are free-of-charge.
The MoA’12 festival location in Jätkäsaari (Rantamakasiini L3/Tyynenmerenkatu 6) will be open to the public daily from 9 May to 3 June (Monday to Friday 12 pm - 8 pm, Saturday to Sunday 12 pm - 6 pm). Guided tours every Saturday 4 pm - 5 pm (in Finnish and English).
Take a look at the professionals of the future and MoA’s programme at moa.aalto.fi. You can also create your own MyMoA event calendar at the website.
MoA is a joint venture realised by the following organisations and businesses: the City of Helsinki and Unigrafia as well as Antalis, Arctech Helsinki Shipyard, Biolan, BMW, Fatboy, the Hjelt Foundation, Iittala, Martela, RGB, Sadolin/AkzoNobel, Sato, Stora Enso, Sub, Suomen Kuitulava Oy, UNICEF Finland, Viking Line and Yeseco.
MoA’12 is part of the World Design Capital Helsinki 2012 programme and included in Aalto University’s Design Capital Living+ programme.
Photographs of the Master's thesis projects
Press photographs of the exhibition
Further information:
Event Producer Katri Winqvist
tel. +358 50 591 4314
katri.winqvist [at] aalto [dot] fi
Exhibition Producer Tarja Peltoniemi
tel. +358 50 532 3817
tarja.peltoniemi [at] aalto [dot] fi
