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The Nuoret 2023 (Young Artists) exhibition, held since 1939, is one of the oldest visual art exhibitions in Finland. Throughout its history, the exhibition has put a spotlight on many artists who have since become household names: Tove Jansson, Eila Hiltunen, Juhana Blomstedt, Ville Andersson, Nastja Säde Rönkkö, to name a few.

This is the first time that the exhibition will expand to seven venues across the centre of Helsinki.

This year, the exhibition will see the works of 36 young artists, united by their age: they are all under the age of 35. Many have graduated from art school, while some are still studying. Their techniques and themes vary.

“Identity issues, in particular, are prominently present in the works. Several strong, deeply personal works were selected for the exhibition the themes of which highlight family and close relationships,” says visual artist Emma Ainala, who chaired the jury that selected the works for the exhibition.

The works displayed were selected through an open application process. The works were selected by a jury that included, in addition to Ainala, Jade Kallio, a student at the Academy of Fine Arts at Uniarts Helsinki, photographer Heli Rekula, and Kunsthalle Helsinki’s Director Nina Toppila.

The exhibition is organised by the Artists’ Association of Finland together with the Artists’ Association MUU, the Association of Finnish Sculptors, the Association of Finnish Printmakers, the Finnish Painters’ Union, the Association of Photographic Artists, Kunsthalle Helsinki, Frame Contemporary Art Finland, the Helsinki Art Museum, HAM, and the Praxis Master’s Programme in Exhibition Studies at the Academy of Fine Arts.

The Nuoret 2023 (Young Artists) exhibition also collaborates with the Nuori Taide (Young Visual Art) event that promotes art education for children and young people.

The exhibition is supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation, Pro Av Saarikko Oy, the City of Helsinki, the Ministry of Education and Culture as well as the Gerda and Salomo Wuorio Foundation. Its media partner is Radio Helsinki. The Maecenas Guild’s young artist prize will be awarded at the exhibition.

Fair working conditions for artists

There is still a lot to be done to ensure that artists are always fairly remunerated for their work. We want to be part of a change that will guarantee fair working conditions for artists.

We will test a new model for the first time in this exhibition in which eleven young artists will each create a new work of art while working for the Artists’ Association of Finland. They will make art on a monthly salary. This may not sound so remarkable to the average salaried worker, but such structures do not really exist in the field of visual arts, in which one’s livelihood comes from several small sources and work is very rarely done under an employment contract.

Every artist in the exhibition will receive a recommended exhibition fee and royalties for their work.

We will publish guidelines in autumn 2023 for museums, galleries and other exhibition organisers to share best practices for employing artists learned from the Nuoret 2023 (Young Artists) exhibition.