Public art – open call for portfolios Photo: City of Helsinki/Tero Pajukallio Open call: Portfolio submissions and portfolio day for professional artists interested in the public space What kind of art does our public space need? As a professional artist, what mark or gesture do you want to leave on the city and its public buildings? Send your portfolio to HAM Helsinki Art Museum and apply to participate in our Portfolio Day. We invite professional artists and artist collectives interested in public space and site-specific practices to submit their portfolios to HAM. We encourage submissions from artists of varied backgrounds, from anywhere in Finland. All forms of artistic expression, from photography to sculpture, performance to media art, are welcome. This open call is not specific to any particular site or project. Our goal is to expand and diversify our knowledge of artists working in Finland interested in creating public art. Based on the portfolios, a selection of artists will be invited to participate in HAM’s Portfolio Day on January 26, 2026. The aim of the day is to bring artists and public art experts together to exchange ideas and discuss the portfolios. Participants will meet HAM’s curators and Museum Director Arja Miller, as well as experts from other art organisations. HAM Helsinki Art Museum serves as the art expert and curator for all of City of Helsinki’s Percentage for Art projects. The city commissions artworks for new and renovated public buildings, such as schools and daycare centres, as well as for public outdoor spaces. Over the coming decades, several new public artworks will be commissioned for developing city districts such as Malmi, Meri-Rastila, Läntinen Bulevardikaupunki, and Kalasatama. Instructions for submitting a portfolio: Application period: October 13 – November 14, 2025 Fill out the application form and submit your portfolio here: Application form Please attach one PDF file to your application, containing: Your portfolio Include a maximum of six examples of your previous work. If your portfolio contains links to media files, make sure the links work and include a password if necessary. A brief motivation letter (max. one A4 page) Outline what interests you in the public space as an artist, whether there is a specific district or site that you are particularly interested in, and what the key themes of your artistic practice are. CV (max. 2 A4 pages) NOTE: We are not looking for finished proposals for future artworks. We are primarily interested in your artistic practice and why you feel it would be suitable for the public space. Please also note that we are unfortunately unable to provide feedback on submitted portfolios. Portfolio Day, January 26, 2026 On the application form, please indicate whether you are interested in participating in the Portfolio Day on January 26, 2026. At the event, we will exchange ideas and familiarise ourselves with your work in greater detail. You may participate either in person in Helsinki or remotely. If you do not wish to participate in the Portfolio Day, you can submit your portfolio for review by HAM’s public art experts. If more people express interest in participating than there are available places, we will select the invitees based on artist diversity and the suitability of their work for public space. Invitations and detailed participation instructions will be sent by December 2025 at the latest. Questions about the open call? If you have any questions, please submit them by email no later than October 31 to: ham.julkinentaide@hamhelsinki.fi. All questions and answers will be published on this web page by November 7, 2025.
