Design Museum

I had a long layover in Helsinki before my flight, so I decided not to waste time at the airport. After some research, I chose to visit the Design Museum. The adult ticket was €20! I honestly think they realized this museum alone might not justify the price, so they included admission to the Architecture Museum across the street as well. Both museums were interesting, but I agree they are quite small, and I lean toward the opinion that the ticket price isn’t worth it.

It saddens me to review it low, but I must agree with other comments. After visiting both museums that came with the ticket purchase… I think the best part was admiring the architecture of the design museum: it’s magnificent. Some of the exhibits were interesting like learning about Finnish designers. However some other exhibits were really really meh that may require a different approach to viewing art. Overall I wouldn’t skip it if there’s time in your day. The price should absolutely be lower.

Really cute museum. A little more expensive than we’re used to in the UK (where most of our museums are free). They do offer student discounts and don’t seem to check ID. We went to see the mending exhibition and it was nice.

My rating of the Design Museum depends on what exhibitions are going on. This last time, the exhibition on the top floor was “FIX”. Highly recommend if you are interested in DIY and repair culture🔧The permanent exhibition downstairs is cool but after you’ve seen it a couple times it is not as exciting. The staff are friendly and the building is very beautiful. Regarding prices, it is on the pricey side, and considering that there was not that much to see, perhaps we paid a bit too much. Overall, I recommend visiting the museum and I would suggest checking out what exhibitions are happening before you go☺️

Fantastic! A must visit if you are interested in design in any capacity. "Design of everyday things" by Don Norman is a nice complimentary read, to get even more out of this museum. We got a chance to visit for free, which happens on every last tuesday of the month. Despite being a free entrance, it wasn't very busy!

Situated in the heart of Helsinki, in a beautiful neo-Gothic building that was formerly a school.

Design needs to be useful, and this museum perfectly conveys that message. Located in Helsinki, this Design Museum uniquely demonstrates how to transform ideas and needs into the simplest and most directly useful forms. Here, you can uncover the inherent logic of design.

Cool museum to visit, and the facilities looks new. A restaurant here and souvenir shop. Just 3 floors.

Neat museum, definitely worth a visit if you have an interest in modern design. I enjoyed learning about Finnish design in all it's various forms, from furniture (the ball chair!) to video games to jewelry that was worn in Star Wars. The museum isn't too big, so it's very easy to see everything in around one to two hours. There were even some interactive exhibits that were fun. This museum might not be your cup of tea if you aren't a fan of more contemporary art, but I found it very interesting!

A museum of Finnish design, how I could I possibly skip this? It was a fun and entertaining look at the progress of different facets of design in Finland in several different technological spaces. Clothing, of course. Architecture, too. And then there's technology, of which the big powerhouse is the mobile phone company Nokia that many people are surprised to learn is not Japanese but is actually a Finland company. Easily an hour here, you can stretch it to two without much trouble at all. [Review 10091 overall, 1677 of 2018.]

Really enjoyed our visit to the design museum! Most of the exhibits were very interactive and interesting. The virtual reality pet of the museum was was extremely cool! It was cool to learn about Finnish design and inventions that are still widely popular today. Also learning about the history behind their interesting glass vases and glassware. There was a lot to read about and see. We got the ticket that also grants you entry into the architecture museum across the street but in my opinion that was a waste of time and money. We only spent maybe 20 minutes in the architecture museum as there wasn't as much to see or learn about.

This Design Museum was my own personal slice of heaven. I had not planned to go here, but stumbled upon it one rainy day and was so glad I did! There was a large room of "new ideas" and their prototypes- everything from chairs to put on outdoor steps that look just like rocks, to tiny bunk bed rooms that one day you will be able to rent out to sleep in for a few hours. There were also displays about how certain clothing designs came to be, how Fisksar scissors were invented and there were many visual displays comparing the objects of the past to current objects (food boxes, toys, fashion, etc). Everything was very visual and interesting and we spent a solid three hours here, but the place isn't huge or overwhelming. You could go through it quicker as well! Cool gift shop too.

For a country that has become recognized around the world for its good culture of design, I was initially expecting Helsinki's Designmuseo to be something far bigger and bolder, on par with the size and scope of the other art museums in town. However, that is simply not the way this musem has been designed, and I actually appreciate the curated, more intimate scale of the collection and exhibits here. Spread across 3 floors of a lovely red building across from Saksalainen kirkko, the Designmuseo offers a visitor a glimpse into decades of Finnish design (think textiles, housewares, and other manufactured goods) in its permanent collection. The basement contains a gallery space for revolving exhibitions, and the top floor offered a beautiful show on the artist Kirsti Rantanen! Check out the small shop with adjoining cafe- both offer a nice reprieve from drooling over the lovely things to be found in this museum.

You should definitely come visit this museum in the Kaartinkaupunki neighborhood in Helsinki. Fascinating displays of Finnish design from the greats like Alvar Aalto, Marimekko, Iittala, Eero Aarnio among others. If you love funky Finnish design then this museum is perfect. There are even some interactive exhibits as well. It's not that big of a museum, for me it's the perfect size and I felt the €10 admission was worth it. Highly recommended and can't wait to come back.

Beautiful museum. We were fortunate enough to visit in December 2013, when there was no entrance fee charged! There was a great exhibition on contemporary graphic design upstairs. It showed today's movement in graphic design and posed numerous interesting questions on the topic. On the ground floor we found the museums regular exhibition on Finnish design. Well displayed and explained. In the basement there was an exhibition on jewelry. Not really our taste... But definitely "interesting"

I loved this museum! Thanks to the people of Reddit, I'm so glad we found out about this place and were able to stop by during our stay in Helsinki. The museum was only 10 euros, but we ended up paying 12 for entrance into both the design museum and architecture museum located nearby (not worth it in my opinion, although there is a cool "tiny" house in between the two buildings that is free to tour - go explore!). This museum offers a nice look into Finnish design history, through clothing, furniture, and housewares. It was pretty neat to read about and see all the different styles. And then of course, there was a huge section on the guy who created the bubble chair. His designs are really cool, and there was an entire floor dedicated to him and his designs. (This may be a temporary exhibit, not sure.) This museum probably isn't for everyone. I think it's more "modern" and contemporary art, versus the traditional and historical museums. But we loved it, and I definitely recommend it for anyone who is the least bit interested in interior design or art design.

Really loved this museum. Small but loved each and every exhibit. Kids are free. We decided to bundle with the architecture museum because it was right next door and only a few dollars more but wouldnt recommend it. See separate review.

Combine this with a trip to the branch in Arabia (much smaller collection out there). This is a compact museum, so it's possible to learn a lot in short amount of time. Small gift shop with a nice assortment, good cafe. I am impressed by the breadth of the collection, and the special exhibit on the history of Finnish design through the decades was well worth the trip.

What a disappointment. Finland has a great history of innovative and classic design work, and Helsinki has some good design shops, but the Design Museum itself well, the work on display there was basically rubbish by students. Most of the work there was 'experimental' style stuff, on a par with 18-year-old Foundation Art students in the UK- bad attempts at 'shock value' riddled with the idea that if art is confusing, then it has something to say. There were a couple of specialist displays from known artists as well, but these were rather forgettable. The only saving grace of the museum (and hence the 2 stars) was the permanent (I think) exhibition in the basement, which is a collection of clothes, furniture and other household items from the last 60 years or so of Finnish history, which tries to show the interesting ways in which Finnish culture has changed and been 'Europeanised' in recent times. On its own though I'm not sure the basement is worth the admission fee. One you could miss.

Weird. On every level just disappointing. I'm clearly just a spoiled snob, but this place lacked anything I will remember besides a preposterous misuse of space and a rude employee or two. The curator of this museum needs a dose of inspiration. Your job isn't to infuse your space with a museum brand of your making, it's to present compelling design exhibits This cannot be the culmination of Finnish design, this can't even be the culmination of Helsinki design.

My husband and I are enthusiastic fans of Finnish design, so this was a must on our trip to Helsinki. It's not terribly big, but they do pack a lot of cool stuff into the space. The permanent exhibit has the evolution of the native designs from the 1800s to present; we marveled over how contemporary even the older things looked. The basement, when we were there, had a temporary exhibit on the works of Alvar Aalto, and I enjoyed getting to know him a bit better. We skipped the top floor, a fashion showcase, simply because neither of us were terribly interested. The gift shop has some nifty stuff, and it's worth a look on the way out.

This museum is just ok. I liked seeing a few designs in the permanent collection, especially the Alvar Aalto stuff. However, I felt like the exhibits were not that impressively curated. I think I might have liked the museum better if there was a different exhibit going on the second floor. I'm not that much for 1980's post-modernism. It was interesting, but that aesthetic just doesn't really float my boat. This museum is also a lot smaller than expected. We breezed through it really quickly. The building is deceptively huge from the outside. I thought the reception area's interior design was more impressive than some of the actual exhibits I saw. Not sure this was worth the price of admission. We didn't have much time to visit any of the other art museums in the city, so I really wish I would've picked one of the larger art museums to visit instead. My expectations were not really met here. Finnish design is quite famous, and as a designer I would have liked to see something a bit more extensive and impressive. I was expecting more of a variety of design. This place mainly focused on designed objects and painting when I was here. Where was all the graphic design? The bold fashion prints that Finland is famous for? Cool Scandinavian Interior design? I think there should have been a wider scope in the permanent collections. I think they also need a larger building. If your going to have a museum about Finnish design ( something Finland is known for around the world), they should've done a much more entertaining and extensive job on the topic.

The Design museum (designmuseo) was absolutely amazing! What made it that way was the upper level (second floor) which held multiple huge exhibits of wide ranging inventions and ideas that the people of Europe (though most were from Scandinavia) were making. Everything on that floor was really cool and I could spend the whole day just doing that and I'll be perfectly fine. The ground floor (first floor) was pretty cool and it had many exhibits like a interactive history of telephones, a small exhibits about the incredibly popular app Angry Birds (FYI, they're from Finland), a small exhibits about Nokia and all of their products (Nokia is also from Finland), a small exhibits about Fiskers scissors (also from Finland), and others that I thought were pretty cool. I loved the upper level though, that was the best. But overall I really enjoyed the Design Museum and I highly recommend that people go there.

What a nice museum about design in Finland. It has a focus on design because it is a design museum. It's also in Finland. Finland is a country that isn't really in Scandinavia although some people think it is. The capital is Helsinki. This is in Helsinki.

nice ambiance, very good quick lunches, coffee and tea exquisite, as are the pastries and cakes