Helsinki in 1908

The legendary Finnish photographer I.K. Inha (1865–1930) photographed Helsinki during the summer in 1908 on a commission from the publisher Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö Ltd (WSOY).

The company was planning to publish the first Finnish guidebook presenting the fast growing, blooming capital city of the country, at that time the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland under Russian rule.

During early summer mornings and quiet evenings, Inha photographed Helsinki’s historical center, handsome new architecture, sea sides and parks. People and street life are not in the spotlight.

The guidebook was published in 1910. Inha’s Helsinki series includes ca. 190 photographs, but only one third was used in the original guidebook. The original glass negatives were donated to the Finnish Museum of Photography by WSOY.

The majority of the images were much later published in another book by the Finnish Museum of Photography and WSOY (J. Kukkonen, R. Toiviainen & K. Westö, Kjell (ed.):
Helsinki valon kaupunki – Helsingfors med I.K. Inhas ögon.
Suomen valokuvataiteen museon julkaisuja 27 / WSOY 2009.)

Around 50 photos have now been published on the web.

www.flickr.com/photos/valokuvataiteenmuseo

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