The operations of the Wilderness and Nature Culture Museum to be built in Imatra focus on fishing, camping and wilderness culture

The plans for the Wilderness and Nature Culture Museum planned for Imatra have been developed during the past fall in order to find more space- and cost-effective alternatives.

—Adapting the plans has been important, because in challenging, financially difficult times, the realism of new projects must be handled responsibly and with special precision. As a very positive thing at the end of the year, we can state that we are included in the program draft of Eastern Finland as a measure proposal, CEO of Erämuseosäätiö Tea Laitimo says.

New solutions have been found and the vision of realizing a new, unique entity for the Imatra town hall has become clearer. The Finnish Hunting Museum Association, which was one of the original project partners, continues its own established museum activities in Riihimäki. 

Regional strengths and relevant content as a cornerstone

The themes of the center to be built in Imatra will be, among other things, camping, fishing, nature and fishing tourism, lake nature, collecting natural products and wilderness culture more broadly. The themes are also the strengths of Finnish tourism and topics of international interest.

—The perspective of living heritage is currently renewing traditional museum thinking. A living heritage in wilderness and nature culture is of central importance, and it enables the implementation of a completely new kind of museum concept, states a member of the board of the Wilderness Museum Foundation, working life professor of museology at the University of Jyväskylä Leena Paaskoski.

From the beginning, the concept has sought a strong network of partners with various operators, and this emphasis will be continued in the coming year also in the direction of the business world and educational institutions. 

A modern center is being developed for Imatra, where visitors can experience experiential museum exhibitions, buy or rent equipment and buy nature tourism services all year round. The service package is complemented by, among other things, a restaurant and specialty stores.

—From the city's point of view, it is positive that the overall picture of the new Erämuseo is now more detailed, and the uncertainty factors regarding the project are decreasing. The development of Vuoksi and fishing tourism play a strong role in the city's strategy, and in that respect the change opens many new doors, the mayor Matias Hilden says.

The city of Imatra, which won the local competition in 2021, is strongly committed to the project and will continue to contribute to the development of the center that will be built in the current city hall. The architectural design will be completed during 2025.

The development work includes e.g. Finnish Fishing Museum Association. 

—Finnish Fishing Museum Association continues with the Wilderness Museum Foundation to plan the Wilderness and Nature Culture Museum for Imatra. Imatra's town hall and Vuoksi beach offer an excellent setting for the presentation of fishing culture and ancillary services related to fishing. The association's wish is to finally have its collection on display and in the preservation it deserves, chairman of the Fishing Museum Association Stina Koivisto says.

For more information:

CEO Tea Laitimo, teaimatra.fi (tea[dot]laitimo[at]imatra[dot]fi), p. 0400 156 677, teaeramuseo.fi (tea[dot]laitimo[at]eramuseo[dot]fi)

Erämuseo Foundation