Scandinavian Culture Calendar: June 2026
By Karl Batterbee
Rasmus Georgiadis presenting its collection at the 2025 edition of Stockholm Fashion Week. Photo: Stockholm Fashion Week
Festival season well and truly kicks off in the Nordics in June, with multi-day events dedicated to music, film, photography, fashion and more. As if the midnight sun wasn’t reason enough to be outside this month, here we highlight a few more occasions to mark in your calendars.
Ravenheart International Film Festival (3 – 7 June)
For the eighth year in a row, Ravenheart International Film Festival will be bringing together audiences and filmmakers for five days dedicated to the most innovative and boundary-pushing works in horror, science fiction, fantasy and animation. Since 2019, Ravenheart has established itself as one of Norway’s leading festivals for fantastic cinema, with a strong focus on artistic quality, original voices and films that challenge, excite and engage. Here, attendees can discover tomorrow’s cult films before anyone else, alongside emerging talents and special screenings of genre-defining classics. Based at Cinemateket in Oslo. For the 2026 edition, organisers have curated a lineup of films that reflects diverse storytelling perspectives, inviting audiences to explore the limitless possibilities of the cinematic world.
Cinemateket, Oslo
www.ravenheartfilmfestival.com
Imaskopi presenting its collection at the 2025 edition of Stockholm Fashion Week. Photo: Stockholm Fashion Week
Stockholm Fashion Week (8 – 11 June)
It’s that time again… Fix up, look sharp! Stockholm Fashion Week 2026 is all set to bring together fashion, design and creativity over four days filled with shows, events and new encounters. International guests, Swedish designers and emerging talents will be taking over venues aplenty across the city, as the Swedish capital transforms into a stylish stage showcasing the future of fashion. Throughout the week, runway shows, pop-ups and evening events are held at various locations around Stockholm. Scandinavian design, innovation and new creative expressions come together in an atmosphere that attracts both industry professionals and members of the public who identify as fully-fledged fashionistas.
Various locations, Stockholm
LEONÍ presenting its collection at the 2025 edition of Stockholm Fashion Week. Photo: Stockholm Fashion Week
Knit Club. Photo: Carolyn Drake
Copenhagen Photo Festival (11 – 21 June)
Copenhagen will be transformed into a city-wide gallery for the striking photography throughout June. For the 15th year in a row, the Copenhagen Photo Festival will be attracting locals and visitors alike, as it offers up visuals with a difference. The festival is planning over 55 exhibitions all over the city, in public streets, metro stations and, of course, a selection of galleries and museums. Copenhagen Photo Festival is one of the leading festivals of its kind and every year, 250-300 photographers from all over the world take part in the programme. The festival’s centre is located in Copenhagen’s old industrial neighbourhood turned cultural hotspot, Refshaleøen. Here, visitors can experience talks linked to the exhibitions, with everyone encouraged to combine their visit with the acclaimed street food from Reffen.
Various locations, Copenhagen
www.copenhagenphotofestival.com
The performance Playing Killjoy by Alice Presencer, is part of VÆKST Creatives, Copenhagen Photo Festival’s initiative to support emerging talents. Photo: Rebeca Buenrostro
Glorify Yourself by acclaimed photographer Carolyn Drake, whose exhibition is described as the highlight of Copenhagen Film Festival.
Helsinki City Festival (12 – 14 June)
A total of more than 50 artists from Finland and abroad will perform at Helsinki City Festival taking place across three days this summer. The 2026 edition of the festival will take over the Helsinki Ice Hall from Friday to Sunday inclusive. Finnish pop favourites on offer to festival goers include Isac Elliot, KUUMAA, The Rasmus and Haloo Helsinki. And the lineup also features some big-hitters from across the globe, from the United Kingdom (Lewis Capaldi and Basement Jaxx), to the United States (Macklemore, Black Eyed Peas, Flo-Rida and Chamillionaire), Jamaica (Shaggy and Brick & Lace) and much more besides. It’s the event that claims to be the kick-off of Nordic music festival season, and with a lineup like that it’s hard to argue there could be a better way to start!
The Helsinki Ice Hall, Helsinki
KUUMAA are just one of the many Finnish favourites included in the line-up of the three day Helsinki City Festival happening this month. Photo: Press image
Isac Elliot is among the many Finnish favourites in the lineup of the three-day Helsinki City Festival happening this month. Photo: Press image
Def Leppard (13 and 16 June)
The British arena-rock band Def Leppard will be coming to Sweden and Finland as part of their Live 2026 tour. Having sold over 110 million albums worldwide and been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame®, Def Leppard has released a series of classic albums that have inspired generations of fans and musicians alike. The 2026 tour marks the band’s first solo arena shows in Europe and the United Kingdom for some time, following on from the hugely successful 2023 tour with Mötley Crüe. That European tour took Def Leppard to arenas across Europe, including a sold-out Wembley Stadium, and would become part of a two-year world tour that sold over two million tickets and visited 27 countries. The reviews were raving, and now Def Leppard are back without having to share the billing with anyone else!
Dalhalla, Sweden (13 June) and Helsinki, Finland (16 June)
Eero Nelimarkka in Helsinki (now until 13 September)
A new exhibition covering the entire career of Eero Nelimarkka (1891–1977) takes a fresh look at the versatile artist and sheds light on his view of the world. The artist’s fascinating life story traces his journey from the son of a washerwoman in Vaasa to one of Finland’s most popular artists. Eero Nelimarkka is known as a painter of the landscapes of South Ostrobothnia, but he was also particularly skilled in portraying people. In Finnish visual art, the 1910s was a decade of searching for something new, and at the time, Nelimarkka’s paintings displayed a reduction of colour and form, in keeping with the modern spirit of the era. During his career, in addition to rural landscapes, he often portrayed cities, including Helsinki as well as views from his many trips abroad. This will be the first exhibition of Nelimarkka’s work in a museum to comprehensively present the artist’s entire career, and the curator is the director of collections management at the Finnish National Gallery.
Ateneum Art Museum, Helsinki
Superstar Swedish DJ and producer Alesso has announced his first show in his home country in ten years. Photo: Sammy Dean Photo
Alesso (27 June)
Superstar Swedish DJ and producer Alesso has announced his first show in his home country in ten years. At the end of June, the award-winning talent will headline Solliden in his native Stockholm with a special show celebrating the evolution of his music. The performance will revisit his biggest hits, showcase new material and offer a tantalising glimpse of what’s next in his career. With the gig taking place at the beautiful Skansen, it promises to be a unique summer evening with one of Sweden’s most renowned names in music. Over the past year, Alesso has delivered a series of huge collaborations, including Surrender with Becky Hill, Inside Our Hearts alongside Martin Garrix, and FADE featuring Pendulum.
Skansen, Stockholm
The British arena-rock band Def Leppard will be coming to Sweden and Finland as part of their Live 2026 tour. Photo: Ross Halfin
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