Geological heritage in the Finnish landscape art
Finnish landscape art has through the ages depicted lakes, sparkling rapids, rocky cliffs, winding esker ridges, erratic boulders and bouldery insides of the woods. Many of the paintings also outline the geology of the landscape quite accurately when viewed with “geological glasses”.
Now start an excursion combining art and geology into the landscapes of the Saimaa Seal Trail! Along the path, there are eight checkpoints through which the geological secrets of landscape paintings are revealed. Discover the hidden treasures of Lake Saimaa!
Just look at the lower right corner of Fighting Capercaillies. There’s a crack in the rock or two boulders facing each other, the shape of which is almost exactly like the birds in battle. It looks like two ghost versions of the actual capercaillies are hitting their rocky heads together.
When walking the path, scan the QR codes in the route signs to see the artwork.
You may start in Kaivanto parking place where you will find the first info sign.
Ferdinand von Wright (1822-1906): Fighting Capercaillies, 1886 (124×188.5 cm), Ateneum Art Museum. Photo: Finnish National Gallery