INVITATION: Helsinki Biennial’s press day on Thursday 8 June beginning at 10 a.m. at HAM Helsinki Art Museum and Vallisaari Island
6.6.2023 11:00:00 EEST | HAM Helsingin taidemuseo | Press release
The contemporary art event Helsinki Biennial 2023 will open to the public on Sunday 11 June on Vallisaari Island and at HAM Helsinki Art Museum. Additionally, the event will spread across the city throughout the summer. The biennial will present around 30 international artists and collectives. Through art, Helsinki Biennial 2023 reflects on some of the major issues of our time, such as the loss of biodiversity, political conflicts, and the impact of new technologies. The biennial’s title, New Directions May Emerge, refers to alternative ways of living in and understanding the world, whilst envisioning other potential futures. Approximately half of the works are new commissions.

The media is welcome to explore Helsinki Biennial’s main exhibitions on Thursday 8 June beginning at 10 a.m. The event starts at HAM Helsinki Art Museum and continues on Vallisaari Island. Helsinki Biennial’s staff and artists will be present at the press event. Please sign up for the press day: Accreditation and sign up for the press day here. Please submit interview requests in connection with the accreditation. Please arrive on time. When arriving at the press event, media representatives will be given ferry passes to access Vallisaari.
PRESS DAY PROGRAMME
10 a.m. Press briefing begins at HAM Helsinki Art Museum. Breakfast by chef Sami Tallberg.
• 10.15–10.30 Speeches by Mayor Juhana Vartiainen, Director of HAM and Helsinki Biennial Arja Miller, and Helsinki Biennial 2023 Curator Joasia Krysa.
• 10.45–11.30 Media representatives are free to explore HAM Helsinki Art Museum’s biennial exhibition.
The media event will continue on Vallisaari in the Helsinki Archipelago
• 11.30 The first bus leaves from in front of HAM (Eteläinen Rautatiekatu) for the Vallisaari ferry (Lyypekinlaituri by the biennial pavilion, next to the Vanha Kauppahalli / Old Market Hall) leaving at 12.00.
• 12.00 The second bus leaves from in front HAM (Eteläinen Rautatiekatu) for the Vallisaari ferry (Lyypekinlaituri by the biennial pavilion, next to the Vanha Kauppahalli / Old Market Hall) leaving at 12.30.
• Helsinki Biennial representatives, event staff, and a great number of biennial artists will be present on Vallisaari.
• On Vallisaari, you can move freely on marked paths. Please note that the complete biennial route is approximately three kilometres long, and the route is not entirely accessible.
• Media representatives are free to explore Helsinki Biennial’s Vallisaari exhibition until 18.00.
Media representatives will return from Vallisaari to Kauppatori (Market Square) independently
• Return transports to the mainland leave from the Torpedolahti pier according to regular services. Check the ferry schedule here.
• Trip duration is approximately 20 minutes.
More information:
Helsinki Biennial 2023, 11 June – 17 September 2023
Press photos for media Password: HB21media
Keywords
Contacts
International PR
Pelham Communications
Alexia Menikou, alexia@pelhamcommunications.com and Yaz Ozkan, yaz@pelhamcommunications.com, +44 20 8969 3959
Local PR
Helsinki Biennial
Reetta Haarajoki, reetta.haarajoki@hamhelsinki.fi
+358 40 168 3669
Links
Helsinki Biennial
Helsinki Biennial is an international contemporary art event which takes place on Vallisaari Island and extends to other locations on the mainland. Informed by Vallisaari – a former military island fusing wild nature and urban heritage – sustainable and responsible values lie at the core of Helsinki Biennial. Each edition includes major site-specific commissions by leading international artists. Helsinki Biennial embodies the city’s ambitious cultural vision, committed to developing Helsinki’s art scene both on a grassroots and institutional level. A major initiative of the City of Helsinki, the Biennial is produced by HAM Helsinki Art Museum. Its inaugural edition in 2021, ‘The Same Sea’, was curated by HAM’s head curators Pirkko Siitari and Taru Tappola.
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