Anniversary Exhibition Free 90 | HAM
Detail from Elga Sesemann’s work Self-Portrait with Yellow Pot, 1943. Photo: HAM/Hanna Kukorelli
Student Stories
The Free Art School has around 65 full-time students each year. Our student body is diverse: the curriculum focuses entirely on art, without external subjects, and attracts applicants from a wide range of backgrounds. These student stories highlight the many paths that have led people here and offer a glimpse into what it’s like to study at the Free Art School.
Student Stories
Minna Salomaa:
“I’m fascinated by the idea of a deliberate mistake.”
Minna Salomaa, Will-o’-the-Wisps, 2024, 60 x 70 cm, oil on canvas
Student Stories
As an international student at the Free Art School. Gloria Velasco:
“Life demands a passion.”
Gloria Velasco, Motherly fears II, oil on canvas, 40 x 30.5 cm, 2024. Photograph: Virppi Sysilehto
Student Stories
Olesya Nedostoynaya has been drawing and painting for as long as she can remember
Olesya Nedostoynaya, Play, 2023, oil on canvas, 54 x 65 cm
Student Stories
Alumni Story: Kristo Saarikoski
Kristo Saarikoski. Photo: Hilla Kurki
Student Stories
Eero Kalervo, now starting his fourth year, was inspired by drawing and art history in high school
Sisyphus, 2021, 100 × 100 cm, oil on canvas
Student Stories
Anime, manga, and digital art led Miska Kukkohovi to painting
Walk, 2022, 120 × 120 cm. Oil and oil pastel on canvas
Student Stories
Marika Maijala shares what the first year has brought
Marika Maijala and the Painting of the Month: Untitled, 2022, oil on canvas. Photo: Virppi Sysilehto