EMMA’s current exhibition shows how African art continues to inspire Western artists.

Espoo Museum of Modern Art EMMA stages its spring exhibition The Power of Africa: Three Perspectives from 24 February to 6 June 2010.

The three perspectives of the title has a double meaning. It refers to the three artforms featured in the exhibition, namely sculpture, painting and mask-making, and also to the three thematic approaches taken.

BRAVO! International theatre festival for children and youth begins this coming Sunday. The festival will be held in the capital region for the sixth time. It offers an exceptional chance to give the young ones of the family exciting cultural experiences in a warm and friendly environment.

The festival brings together an array of performances from well-known theatre groups across Europe. The programme offers over 40 performances in Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen. It contains performances suitable to children and youth of all ages.

CINEMATIC history is punctuated by many successful directors and their actor muse. David Lean had his Alec Guinness, Woody Allen had his Mia Farrow, Martin Scorsese had his Robert De Niro and, well, someone sure had his Pauly Shore.

After their first collaboration Edward Scissorhands in 1990, audiences have been privy to a further five occasions where Johnny Depp and Tim Burton have worked together over the last twenty years. From Ed Wood, to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, via Sleepy Hollow, Sweeny Todd and The Corpse Bride, their combined imagination has made a lasting impression around the globe.

Set in the Highlands of Scotland, La Sylphide is a classic fairytale with a tragic twist, and one of the oldest surviving ballets still in the standard repertoire, having been premiered in Paris in 1832. Its most famous version, choreographed by August Bournonville, had its premiere in Copenhagen in 1836.

Brought to Finland by the Royal Danish Ballet and premiered on 26 February, this is the first time La Sylphide by Bournonville is being performed here.

The latest offerings from up-and-coming Finnish media art and photography students.

MARCH BRINGS many interesting cultural events, but one must see of the month is the new Helsinki School exhibition, Photography and Video NOW, featuring cutting-edge photographs, videos and installations by 17 young-generation artists.

The range of works takes the viewer on a fascinating journey into the artists’ thoughts, encouraging them to step out of the role of mere observer and take on an active role. The works explore a variety of themes, including psychological portraits, ...

Trust, ownership and belonging are the key themes that Marko Vuorinen engages with in his latest body of work Sleepers NYC. Initially a website, the project now includes a travelling exhibition that features a selection of photographs and video portraits, all shot during 2008 and 2009.

The stars of the show are everyday New Yorkers who have been unknowingly photographed while sleeping in public. For some of the subjects/sleepers, the urban landscape becomes a bedroom momentarily or voluntarily, for others it is clear that the street represents a more permanent lodging.

CAJ BREMER is one of the biggest names in post-war Finnish photojournalism. His black and white photo reportages have afforded him a storytelling role as a photographer. The Ateneum is featuring a collection of more than 150 of his photographs, the oldest dating back to the early 1950s, the latest being from last year. The exhibition includes journalistic and family photographs as well as studies of light and nature. Through these themes, the show also traces the development of Finnish society and media over the last 50 years.

Tsuumi Dance Company’s new Kalevala-themed production tackles Finnish men’s longing for love.

“When we’RE onstage, we don’t so much perform to the audience as socialise by dancing together,” explains Samuli Nordberg, choreographer and artistic director of Dance Company Tsuumi.

This communal feel and the primitive force of Finnish folk dance, combined with fresh ideas and modern interpretation, are Tsuumi’s most striking features. The company stands out from the crowd in Helsinki, where folk dancing is these days a curiosity. But tradition lives on elsewhere in the country, with an estimated 30,000 devotees of all ages nationwide.

There is often a moment in an actor’s career that their place in celluloid history is stamped forever. Think of Clark Cable informing Scarlett that he frankly just couldn’t give a damn at the end of Gone with the Wind, Al Pacino vigorously inviting everyone to say hello to his little friend in Scarface, and even good old Arnold Schwarzenegger promising us that he’ll be back in The Terminator.

For Scottish actor Ewan McGregor, it’s the horrifying, yet hilarious scene in Trainspotting whereby he emerges from Scotland’s worst toilet that has stained audiences’ memory. But, have no fear, this week offers two new opportunities to surpass the mind-bending scenario of a man swimming about in a toilet accompanied by the soothing tones of Lou Reed.

Many consider Marika Mäkelä to be one of Finland’s greatest modern artists. She has been a professional painter since the 1970s, and her latest exhibition, Jewels of Excavation, is now on display at Galerie Anhava until the beginning of March.

Gallerist Ilona Anhava has said that Mäkelä’s paintings can not only be viewed with pleasure but that they can also be felt, smelt and almost heard. She describes that one can become totally immersed in the paintings because they create intellectual and physical pleasure.