Porvoo Art Factory waterfront block open art competition

A public artwork will be commissioned for the riverside block of Porvoo’s Art Factory through an open national art competition.

The City of Porvoo, in cooperation with Kesko, invites visual artists living and working in Finland to participate in an open art competition for a work located on the facade of the new K-Citymarket store built in Länsiranta in Porvoo.

The competition is organised in accordance with this competition programme and the competition rules by the Artists’ Association of Finland.

The competition entries must be submitted electronically via the ArtCurator service according to the service’s instructions. Competition proposals must be submitted by 25 April 2025 at 15.00 at the latest.

Questions about the Competition: Additional questions on competition proposals may be submitted to the contact person Laura Lehtinen by 23.59 on 21 February 2025 by email to laura.lehtinen@freizimmer.fi or by calling +358 50 379 3555. Answers to the questions will be posted on this competition website in the order of submission and by 7 March 2025 at the latest.

The purpose of the competition is to acquire a work of art for a block built in Jokiranta in Porvoo, which will include a hotel and residential buildings in addition to the K-Citymarket store. The artwork will be located on the glass wall (390 m2) and the opaque wall surface behind it (390 m2) on the Porvoo riverbank side of the building.

The objective of the competition is to find an impressive and innovative work of art that takes the dimensions of the location and its surroundings into account for the site. We hope that the design of the work will accommodate changing seasons and weather conditions as well as the ability to view the work both from up close and afar from the other side of the river.

People of different ages and backgrounds living in Porvoo as well as visitors will be able to enjoy the work, meaning that the work must be suitable for a wide variety of viewers. The objective is to achieve a piece of work that is sustainable in terms of a long life cycle and that is easy to maintain. The life cycle of the work should match that of the frame of the building.

The art budget for the work is € 175,000 (VAT 0 %). The art budget must include all the costs of the work. A basic implementation of the glass elements, their acquisition and installation as well as the wall placed behind the glass are part of the construction contract. The aim is to have the work of art implemented following the competition by the end of 2026. A separate agreement will be made for the implementation after the competition is over.

After the competition ends, the jury will select some proposals to be displayed for public voting. A total of 13,000 euros will be awarded as follows: the competition winner will receive 6,000 euros, the second place 3,500 euros, and the third place 2,500 euros. The winner of the public vote will receive 1,000 euros.

The final decision on commissioning the artwork will be made by the City of Porvoo in collaboration with Kesko, which has the right to commission the artwork based on any of the awarded sketches. According to the competition rules, the organizers also have the right not to commission any artwork based on the competition.

The competition jury shall comprise the following members:

• Chair Susann Hartman, Head of Cultural Services, City of Porvoo
• Pekka Mikkola, City Planning Architect, City of Porvoo
• Sari Hilska, Cultural Designer, City of Porvoo
• Susanna Widjeskog or Johanna Lehto-Vahtera, Porvoo Museum
• Veli Granö, artist, Porvoo Artists’ Association
• Jari Salmela, Planning Manager, Kesko
• Jukka Kauto, Head Designer, KAUTO NIKULAINEN arkkitehdit Oy
• Jaakko Niemelä, artist member appointed by the Artists’ Association of Finland
• Kaisaleena Halinen, artist member appointed by the Artists’ Association of Finland

Arts Coordinator Heini Orell from Frei Zimmer Oy coordinating the art entity in Länsiranta will serve as the competition secretary without voting rights.

The competition period is 22 November 2024 – 25 April 2025.

• 22 November competition starts
• 21 February 2025: period to submit questions ends
• 7 March 2025: all answers to questions available on this competition website
• 25 April 2025: competition ends at 15.00, at which time the proposals must have arrived with the competition organisation
• May/June: popular vote
• June: competition winners are announced

Questions about the Competition: Additional questions on competition proposals may be submitted to the contact person Laura Lehtinen by 23.59 on 21 February 2025 by email to laura.lehtinen@freizimmer.fi or by calling +358 50 379 3555. Answers to the questions will be posted on this competition website in the order of submission and by 7 March 2025 at the latest.