The Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation has awarded a grant of EUR 500,000 to a three-year project by the Artists’ Association of Finland. The aim of the project is to prepare a proposal for a concrete model for a new nationwide organisation for visual artists and to strengthen existing cooperation between organisations.
The Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation has awarded a grant of EUR 500,000 to the Artists’ Association of Finland for a three-year organisational development project to be carried out in 2026–2028. The central objective of the project is to draw up a model or alternative models for a new nationwide organisation for visual artists that would bring together the Artists’ Association of Finland and its five member organisations under a single organisational structure. At this stage, none of the organisations have yet committed to integration.
Within the framework of the project, extensive organisational modelling will be carried out to outline the practical implementation of the new organisation’s governance, decision-making structures, services, funding, and operations. During the project, a clear and implementable proposal for a future nationwide organisation for visual artists will be developed, and the organisations’ existing joint activities in the fields of communications and advocacy will be strengthened.
The aim of a potential integration is to improve advocacy for the visual arts and services for visual artists, as well as to enhance the sector’s ability to respond to future needs and changes. The grant awarded by the Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation makes it possible to take the next steps in this ambitious development work, which has wide-ranging impact across the entire visual arts field.