The next phase of Tapiola Park Art Competition starts

The City of Tampere organizes a two-phased public art competition for artists with connection to Tartu County. The first phase was an open call for portfolios, in which 24 artists and artist groups submitted their portfolios. Based on the submitted portfolios, the competition’s multidisciplinary jury decided unanimously to invite three artists to the next phase of the competition.

The short-listed artists are:

Jass Kaselaan

Maarit Mälgi

Timo Toots

Tapiola Park is located in Eastern Tampere. It is an idyllic neighbourhood park and important green corridor for the locals. Image: Miina Pohjolainen.

In the second phase of the competition the invited artists will create a sketch of an artwork to be situated in the Tapiola Park, in Eastern Tampere. The artwork is commissioned to celebrate both the friendship of the twin cities of Tartu and Tampere, and Tartu’s position as the European Capital of Culture in the year 2024.

All in all, the jury was delighted of the high quality and versatility of the received portfolios. Both artist with a lot of experience in public art making and artists in the beginning of their career had participated. In the evaluation process, the freshness of the artistic approach and suitability of the artist’s practice particularly to Tapiola Park and its natural surroundings was emphasized.

The short-listed artists work with different mediums and are in different phases of their career. They all have their own unique visual language and expression, which impressed the jury.

The invited artists have time until the end of May to create the sketch for Tapiola Park’s new artwork. The multidisciplinary jury will decide the outcome of the competition and the City of Tampere makes the final decision of commissioning the artwork.