A former Finnish military island is to play host to Europe's latest biennial

A former Finnish military island is to become the location of the latest addition to the art world’s bustling biennial calendar.

Launching in June 2020, the Helsinki Biennial — which has commandeered the landmass known as Vallisaari — has been ushered into being with the intention of “creating a platform to communicate the diverse and dynamic nature of the contemporary Finnish art scene.”

It is said, by the event’s organisers at least, that the inaugural biennial will foster a “sustainable approach to exhibition making,” while ensuring that everything in display embodies Helsinki’s “ambitious” cultural vision.

Maija Tanninen-Mattila, current director of the Helsinki Art Museum, who are responsible for staging the forthcoming event, describes the city as one which is “open, welcoming” and hopes that the Biennial mirrors that sense of inclusion. She says that the “informal setting” of Vallisaari — which was only opened to the public in 2016, having been a place to store weaponry between 1917 and 2008 — will be a “fruitful source of inspiration, bringing international art to locals, and creating more visibility for the art produced in Finland today.”

Further details, including fun stuff like who will actually be showing work at the first edition of the Helsinki Biennial, are set to land in the inboxes of the press later this year.