Runokuu / “Poetry Moon” literature festival 19th edition in 2023 has “connection” as a theme and takes place in Helsinki. On the programme we have English descriptions of events in which the language used is English or the event can be enjoyed by everyone regardless of Finnish language skill. To see the whole programme with all-Finnish events, see the Finnish version of the programme.
Our main locations this year are Tiivistämö (Kaasutehtaankatu 1) and Rosebud Sivullinen bookstore (Kaisaniemenkatu 5). Read about Tiivistämö’s accessibility here.
The graphic design of Poetry Moon festival 2023 is by Anna Nurmela.
The festival is supported by Ministry of Culture and City of Helsinki as well as Versopolis Network and Creative Europe.
All events of Poetry Moon Festival follow these guidelines of safer space
You can find the Accessibility Statement of our websites here (in Finnish)
Runokuu (Poetry Moon) is one of the largest poetry festivals in the Nordic countries. It has taken place in Helsinki annually since 2004, gathering both Finnish and international poets and poetry lovers to the Baltic sea in late August. The festival consists of late night poetry clubs, poetic and interdisclipinary performances, literature related art exhibitions as well as deep-diving discussions into the place of poetry in the world. Each festival has a unique theme, which serves as a conversation starter and inspiration for our varied programme.
We aim to push experimental, marginal and young poets and poetics into the forefront, without forgetting the importance of roots and traditions. Every year we also invite several international guests to perform at the festival. This international atmosphere broadens the perspectives of Finnish poetry and helps create lasting bonds between poetry scenes all around the world.
Every year we also collaborate with the Helsinki region public transport system in our “Poetry on Track” project. We choose contemporary, recently published poems for HSL, which broadcasts them on advertisement screens of public transport throughout the duration of the festival. We also print beautifully designed poetry postcards with these poems and give them out for free at our events and in selected places around Helsinki.
If you are interested in suggesting an event or a collaboration for Poetry Moon, we would love to hear from you! Please contact Mandi Markkanen (mandi.markkanen[at]nvl.fi) with all of your ideas and questions.