What would you like to see in the Land of Finlanders? Answer the question and win a culture-filled voyage to the incomparable Finnish archipelago. The competition is part of the collaboration between Frame Contemporary Art Finland and Visit Finland for the 57th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia in Venice.
The competition references The Aalto Natives, an installation featured at the Alvar Aalto Pavilion of Finland in Venice. Created by Erkka Nissinen and Nathaniel Mellors, the piece reinterprets clichés about Finnish history and national identity. In the piece, Geb and Atum, two creatures from outer space in search for a new place to live, arrive on a planet looking deceptively like Finland determined to find out what the Land of Finlanders looks like.
The competition will launch on 9 May and will run until the end of August 2017. You can participate online at visitfinland.com/nordicislandsculture.
A collaborative project between Visit Finland and Frame, the competition aims to tell international audiences about Finland’s unique archipelago and to promote the coastal towns as attractive destinations for culturally curious tourists.
“In the summer, the Finnish archipelago is packed with cultural delights for international travellers. You can enjoy the laid-back islander lifestyle or sample urban attractions in the coastal towns. The museums offer a variety of delights for lovers of art and design while inviting visitors to learn about the unique pelagic nature and the story of the country that is currently celebrating the centenary of its independence. We want to give biennale visitors a taste of the same enchantment that inspired famous Finns, from Tove Jansson to Alvar Aalto,” says Susanna Kyllönen, Coordinator of Visit Finland’s Luova matka project.
“The biennale is full of tourists who have come to Venice expressly because of thought-provoking art. These cultural travellers are also a particularly interesting target group for the Finnish tourist industry. Being in a central location in the Giardini gardens, the Finnish Alvar Aalto Pavilion is superbly placed to reach out to them,” says Raija Koli, Director of Frame.
Organised every other year, the Venice Biennale is one of the most prestigious contemporary art events in the world, with about half a million visitors. This year the biennale will open to the public on 13 May and will remain open until 26 November 2017.
Apart from the competition, Visit Finland and Frame will also host a media event during the opening week that will showcase Finland as a tourist destination. The event will feature Tom Jeffreys, a British journalist and writer living in Finland who will talk about his experiences in the northern land of Alvar Aalto and other real Finlanders.
The main partner for The Aalto Natives is the Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, along with Finpro/Visit Finland and the City of Jyväskylä.
The main supporter of The Aalto Natives is the Ministry of Education and Culture of Finland, together with the Mondriaan Fund and the Saastamoinen Foundation.
The Aalto Natives is supported by Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Jack Bakker, THE EKARD COLLECTION, the Promotion Centre for Audiovisual Culture AVEK, Suomi Finland 100, Dommering Collection, Frans Hals Museum | De Hallen Haarlem, Cobra Museum of Modern Art, Embassy of Finland in Rome, MONITOR, Ellen de Bruijne Projects, Stigter van Doesburg, The Box, and Matt’s Gallery.