Jirina Alanko
Antti Kauppinen
English
Diversity is a natural part of Helsinki.
Art historian Antti Kauppinen, 44, spent his childhood and youth in the Merihaka district of Helsinki, where his parents still live.
“The light from the Suomenlinna lighthouse use to shine across my childhood bedroom.”
For the past five years, Kauppinen has lived in the Vallila district. As an adult, he has also lived in St. Petersburg, Hong Kong and Los Angeles. Understandably, he finds Helsinki much more accessible than these giant cities.
“Here you can easily visit five different places in one day. In St. Petersburg or Hong Kong, by comparison, you can take care of maybe one thing a day – and in LA maybe half a thing. Walking around Helsinki is also pleasant. For a city, it has exceptionally clean air.”
Kauppinen also appreciates the fact that people with reduced mobility have been so well taken into account in Helsinki’s urban planning.
His day job is as a coordinator at HAM Helsinki Art Museum, but Kauppinen is impressively multitalented: in 2022, he even appeared as a model in the Gucci fashion show during Milan Fashion Week. In addition, Kauppinen is active in the MSC Finland - Tom's Club fetish club and hosts the Homotutka (Gaydar) podcast. He has also published cookbooks and several travel guides.
According to Kauppinen, before the corona pandemic, Helsinki may even have had a bigger gay club scene than Stockholm, but many clubs have since closed their doors. Nevertheless, Helsinki is still an interesting and save travel destination for sexual minorities.
“There is not one big gay district here. Instead, diversity is a natural part of Helsinki as a whole. Gay culture can be found all over the city.”
Kauppinen recommends Helsinki’s public saunas to all visitors.
“We have a very unique sauna and nudity culture. In Finland, nudity is not sexual in itself. Instead, touching is. In this regard, we are in complete contrast to the cultures in Central and Southern Europe, where nudity is generally always seen as sexual, but people touch each other all the time.”
Kauppinen praises the attitude of body peace that is prevalent in Finnish saunas. People of all ages are welcome to enjoy the heat and steam, and no one is criticised.
He also notes how food allergies and special diets are so well taken into consideration in Finland.
“We don’t even realise how rare this is around the world. I would certainly recommend Finland to anyone with a gluten-free diet, for example.”
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Even big cities can feel small for kids if they stick to their own neighbourhood. Kulttuurisauna is a public sauna in Merihaka, where I grew up. In front of the sauna is Risto Salonen’s sculpture Reflections, which is where I used to go out onto the ice in wintertime and ski with my family. When I was small, I could sit in one of the holes on the side of the sculpture!
The sea is a key element in Helsinki. I visit the Merimelojat clubhouse to go sea kayaking in summertime and ice swimming in wintertime. Next to the clubhouse is Cafe Regatta, which looks like a traditional red cottage and is the perfect place to enjoy coffees afterwards.
Admire the best bottoms in town! Body peace for everyone, but bronze can be objectified. This sculpture by Felix Nylund was unveiled in 1932. There is a lot of interesting public art in Helsinki, as one percent of public construction funding is invested in art. That’s why you can find so many interesting works of art in public spaces here.
The nudist beach on the island of Pihlajasaari is a regular nudist beach that just happens to be popular among Helsinki’s gays, who gather there on the upper rocks in summertime. Pihlajasaari is a beautiful island with all kinds of swimming places – there’s even a separate beach for dogs. Admiring the silhouette of the city from the island is something everyone should experience in Helsinki.
In summer 2020, the artist Touko Laaksonen, a.k.a. Tom of Finland, was honoured with a commemorative plaque on the wall of his long-time residence at Tehtaankatu 7. The occasion marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of the artist. Laaksonen lived in the building from 1969 to 1984, the period during which he was most productive. I personally oversaw the project, and we received donations from across Europe and as far away as America.
HAM has wonderful exhibitions. It also has a free-of-charge side where you can see the art of Tove Jansson, for example. Since it is located in the city centre, it’s easy to pop in even for a quick visit. HAM has been my workplace for varying stretches for 15 years already, and I’m now a full-time employee there.
Visiting the island of Vallisaari, you find yourself suddenly in the wilderness, yet you can still see Helsinki Cathedral and the Market Square on the mainland. Vallisaari is situated just a short 15-minute ferry ride from the city centre. When you get there, you get the feel of being in a wild, ancient forest. It’s open all year round, but the public ferry only operates during the summer season.