Grants and residencies

Arts

Artistic work, research and planning

The purpose of the grant is to enable my own artistic work and to carry out research and preparatory measures for the establishment of an international artist residency in Reila, Pyhäranta. I am Roos Hermsen, a visual artist, writer and curator. Together with another artist, Katri Paunu, we have acquired a former army base in Reila, Pyhäranta, where we live and work. The property with its buildings opens up great opportunities to develop a new artist residency in Finland. The estate has plenty of different spaces that can be used for artistic work such as painting, ceramics, sculpting, writing, media- and multidisciplinary art. Organizing art exhibitions and concerts will also be an important activity of the residency. We have established Taidetila Muijala ry to develop the activities of the art space and artist residency. I am currently the chairman of the association and my responsibility is to lead the development of operations.

Taidetila Muijala is a new art space and artist residency located at Reila, South-West Finland. We focus on artistic freedom, artists’ wellbeing, ecology, sustainability, cultural activity in the rural area and combining the local with the international.

Our artist-led association was founded in 2022. In 2023 we are running our first pilot residency year in which we are hosting 12 international artists. Thanks to a 6-months working grant from Kone Foundation, I (Roos Hermsen, chair Taidetila Muijala ry) have been able to develop our pilot residency program and to start the residency operations.

During the grant period (January – June 2023) I started by doing research on existing residencies and how they operate. Based on this research and the posibilities of our premises we formulated our own residency profile and operating principles. I have made a website, worked on promotion and published the first open call for residencies.

The 2023 pilot residencies have been an intensely positive experience. The artists are impressed and inspired by the place and our starting organisation. Our low-profile and open approach enables them to get involved and invested in the project. This experience has inspired us to start developing an open, organic organisational structure to allow continual fresh perspectives and which will generate long-term sustainability.

This summer we have hosted a couple events to show our progress. In July we held an Open doors day for the local audience to get acquainted with our operations. During August we organised an international group exhibition called ‘Harvest’ in our updated Navetta gallery and Viljamakasiini. The site-specific works reflected upon the area and the space, its history and possible future use. The exhibition emphasized the unique features of the land and the buildings where the works were shown.

During the grant period we also focused on taking sustainability measures. We changed the premises heating system by investing in air-to-water and air-heating pumps. We use green, renewable electricity and recycle our waste. We are renovating and maintaining the old buildings on our estate, to give them a new use and purpose. We have also started setting up a recycled materials and tools storage and we are planning to set up ecological workshops.

This 6-months grant period has been crucial for kick-starting our residency operations. It enabled me to work full time with a full focus and to make the most out of this pilot residency year. It has been a very promising and inspiring time, full of hope and plans for the future. I am forever grateful to Kone Foundation for trusting and supporting the development of our project and thereby making this new initiative possible.

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