Tumpkin’s Time

2024 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kirsi Kunnas (1924–2021), a beloved poet, children’s author, translator and Academician. Artist Alexander Reichstein has created the three-dimensional exhibition Tumpkin’s Time based on Kunnas’ nursery rhymes, bringing the captivating characters to Mikkeli Art Museum. In the exhibition, the main characters of her poems take visitors on an adventure under the canopy of the Wonder Tree full of surprises and hidden details from the poems. The original illustrations deepen the exhibition experience and allow visitors of different generations to identify the era they recognise. When it was first published in 1956, Tiitiäisen satupuu (Tumpkin’s wonder tree) book of nursery rhymes reformed Finnish children’s poetry and rhymes. Poems which focus on the world of children inspired the poet to continue working on the subject until 2020, when she published a collection of poems entitled Tiitiäisen metsä (Tumpkin’s forest). The poems brimming with humour, playfulness and verbal revelry are accompanied by the insightful illustrations of some of the best Finnish illustrators of their time – Maija Karma, Julia Vuori, Kristiina Louhi, Christel Rönns, Pia Westerholm and Silja-Maria Wihersaari.

The Tumpkin’s Time exhibition was originally produced by Päivälehti Museum (now known as Merkki, the Media Museum and Archives). The exhibition has also been displayed in the Moomin Museum, and the collection of illustrations presented there was curated by producer Minna Honkasalo.