Finland

1. Cultural policy

Cultural policy profile

Cultural policy profile of Finland in 7 thematic chapters, including additional information and resources:

Government

Ministry of Culture

2. Official representations

Representation of Finland in Belgium

• Embassy of Finland in Belgium

• Permanent representation of Finland to the European Union

• Finnish Cultural Institute for the Benelux (EUNIC member): serves as a liaison between players in the cultural field in Finland and the Benelux countries. The institute’s main goal is to create opportunities in which artists and organisations can elaborate new projects and new possibilities of collaboration in different cultural fields, from visual and performing arts, to literature, design, cinema, and more. The institute also produces its own content and productions in close collaboration with its partner networks, often tackling current social issues. 
  
  Kati Laakso, Director
  kati.laakso@finncult.be
  Boomstraat 14/3 Rue de l’Arbre
  1000 Brussels

Representation of Flanders in Finland

Diplomatic Representation of the Government of Flanders in Finland

Geraldine Reymenants
General Representative of the Government of Flanders in the Nordic Countries

3. About funding, cooperation and information centers

– Funding and cooperation

All disciplines

• Arts Promotion Centre Finland TAIKE is an expert and service agency for promoting the arts. Taike together with its arts councils and boards awards grants to professional artists working in Finland and subsidies to Finnish communities in the field of the arts. Taike is IFACCA National Member in Finland.

• The Finnish Cultural Foundation: A private foundation dedicated to promoting art, science, and other fields of intellectual and cultural endeavor in Finland. The Foundation provides grants from a central fund and 17 regional funds.

• Kone Foundation: an independent and unaffiliated organisation, which awards grants to promote academic research, culture and art. They popularise research and organise events to bring art and research to wide audiences. They pursue active arts and research policies and constantly seek to provide alternatives to the mainstream.

• Association of Finnish Foundations: an association for Finnish grant providers. Their 208 members support Finnish art, research and societal development annually with half a billion euros. The Association runs the Aurora Database, in which you can search for Finnish funding opportunities in sciences and arts, for both project funding and personal grants.

• TelepART Mobility Support: promotes opportunities for performing artists, scientists and researchers to travel and perform internationally. It is an easy and quick micro-funding format aimed for emerging and semi-established professional artists and young academics.

Visual Arts

• Frame Finland: supports international initiatives, facilitates professional partnerships, and encourages critical development in the field of Finnish contemporary art.

– Information

• The Finnish cultural and academic institutes (SKTI): advance international mobility, visibility and collaboration of Finnish professionals in the arts, culture and research. This is the EUNIC member.

• Creative Europe desk
  • The Finnish Creative Europe Desk’s website
  • ec.europa.eu/culture/resources/creative-europe-desks

• Country page on On the Move: On the Move is the cultural mobility information network, providing information and knowledge for artists and cultural professionals active across borders. On this page, you can find all current calls related to the country as well as the latest version of the Cultural Mobility Funding Guide – and more.

• Ars Baltica: Focused on cultural cooperation around the Baltic Sea, Ars Baltica provides country profiles for all 11 countries. Find your way to further information about film, literature, music, visual arts and performing arts in Estonia!. “Cross-sectional” contains general information about projects, programmes and institutions that are dedicated to different fields of arts and culture.

Mobility Info Point

• See below in performing arts: TINFO – Theatre Info Finland

Art education / education & research

• AR Artistic Research: Portal for artistic research in Finland

4. Other information portals and platforms

– All disciplines

• ThisisFINLAND: forms an attractive window on Finland for everyone interested in our country, its culture and its people. Produced by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and published by the Finland Promotion Board.

• Finland Festivals: brings together an overview of festivals in music, dance, theatre, literature, visual arts, film and children’s cultural events. Finland Festivals is a non-profit organisation that serves the culture and tourism sector, focusing on representing the collective interests of festivals, marketing and public relations, information gathering, research and training.

• TransArtists: Overview of artists’ residency programmes in Finland, in all disciplines.

• ArtInRes: provides and shares information about Finnish Artist-in-Residence field and other residency opportunities both for artists and for organisations.

– Visual Arts

• Finnish Art Index: List of contemporary art organizations and operators in Finland

• The Artists’ Association of Finland: Advocate and expert association representing over 3000 professional artists in Finland. The Association is a member of IAA / AIAP.

• The Finnish Artists’ Studio Foundation: founded in 1990 by the The Artists Association of Finland (AAF). The purpose of the Foundation is to secure and offer reasonably rated working facilities and studio apartments for visual artists and to otherwise take part in enhancing their working conditions.

• Finnish Craft Organisation (TAITO): Founded in 1913, the Finnish Crafts Organization Taito represents its members in Finland, engages in developing the sector and tends to communications and domestic and international connections. The organization’s own publication, the TAITO journal, has been issued without interruption since 1907.

– Performing arts

• Theatre Info Finland TINFO: an expertise center in the performing arts, helps theatre professionals increase their international mobility and find partners by mentoring and increases awareness of Finnish plays and performing arts. TINFO also operates the On the Move’s Mobility Information Point. Finally, TINFO is also the national ITI member.

• Circus & Dance Info Finland: provides information on professional circus and dance in Finland and supports their artistic and cultural development through its networks, promotional activities and mentoring.

• ASSITEJ Finland: The Finnish branch of ASSITEJ, the association representing professional theater for children and young people. 

• Trade Union for Theatre and Media Finland, Teme (STST): the biggest trade union of art and culture in Finland. The members of Teme are professionals, students, freelancers and self-employed persons in the fields of theatre, dance, film and TV production. Takes part in the Dance Passport Scheme.

• Association of Finnish Theatres: has 62 member theatres all around Finland subsidised by the government or cities and the Finnish National Theatre. We work towards ensuring the operational preconditions of our member theatres and facilitating the making of high-quality theatre in Finland.

• Teatterikeskus – Theatre Centre: an association of independent performing arts groups from various genres (theatre, dance, circus, performance art, children’s theatre, musical theatre, puppet theatre, etc) providing services to its 50 members and supervising their interests.

– Music

• The Finnish Music Foundation (MES): The foundation allocates grants to authors, producers and publishers and promotes and financially supports live music events, music production, music marketing and export, publishing, education and development activities related to Finnish music.

• Association of Finnish Symphony Orchestras (Suosio): promotes and develops Finland’s symphony and chamber orchestras, and safeguards their interests and rights. It was founded in 1965 and has been actively championing orchestral music ever since.

• Music Finland: supports the entire Finnish music industry in establishing connections, present their music and grow their audiences and businesses in the international market. Music Finland facilitates also information about Finnish music and the industry. Music Export Office, member of EMEE.

• Finnish Music Council (FMC): an umbrella organisation in the Finnish music sector. It contributes to the internal co-operation and participates in the development of the music field, and promotes the realization of music rights at national and international level.

5. Regional organisations

• The Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture (NDPC): a governmental initiative which brings together national authorities, practitioners from cultural and creative industries (CCI) and experts. It works towards a stronger, more competitive and more resilient CCI sector that contributes significantly to the sustainable development of the Northern Dimension region (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, the Russian Federation and Sweden).

• Nordic Culture Point: an institution of the Nordic Council of Ministers which works to support Nordic co-operation within the area of culture and to increase awareness of Nordic culture in Finland. 

• Nordic Culture Fund: works to support innovative and dynamic artistic and cultural life in the Nordic Region that is diverse, accessible and of high quality. Through this mission, we wish to stimulate the development of art and culture at all levels in the Nordic region, as well as in a global context.

• Saami Council: a voluntary Saami organization (a non–governmental organization), with Saami member organizations in Finland, Russia, Norway and Sweden. The Cultural Unit is promoting a crossborder saami policy within the cultural field and supports both traditional and modern saami culture.

• Baltic Nordic Circus Network (BNCN): a collaborative network of 20 circus arts organisations in the Baltic and Nordic countries. BNCN organises activities which aim to support the circus field in the Baltic-Nordic countries at large. From workshops to seminars to international residencies – for both artists and industry professionals focus on skills development, best practice, increased knowledge and cooperation as well as cultural and national identity.