Artist Ninni Luhtasaari Will Make the New Public Art Work for Lamminrahka Area's New School
Known for her ceramic works, music and textile-based art artist Ninni Luhtasaari was awarded in the art competition of Lamminrahka area’s new school building. Lamminrahka area in Kangasala is currently under construction and will house around 8000 new inhabitants. Luhtasaari’s upcoming work consists of multiple parts and will be ready along side the school construction in 2023.
The art competition coordinated by Public Art Agency Finland was realised in two phases. First phase was an open call through which artists could send in their portfolios and examples of previous work. Based on the portfolios four artists were invited to create a proposal of the art work for the new school. Altogether 124 artists send their portfolios. The invite-based drafting phase was organised anonymously – the jury got to know the winning artist’s name only after the selection.
Luhtasaari’s winning proposal Harhailevat ajatukset (Wandering Thoughts) consists of five ceramic reliefs. Each part is hand-built using ceramic mosaic and tile techniques. The largest part (in the image) is almost three metres wide and two metres high and will be situated in the central spot inside the new school. Image: Ninni Luhtasaari - www.ninniluhtasaari.com
“In an anonymous art competition the quality of the proposal is crucial, not the artist’s previous merits. This way also young, emerging artists can succeed as this competition result showcases.”
The art competition was realised according to the rules and guidelines of the Artists’ Association of Finland. The guidelines of the Artists’ Association secure fair competition process for the artists, which is visible in the number of interested artists in this competition and in the high quality of the proposals. In future as Lamminrahka area grows, the guidelines and rules will also be implemented in upcoming art competitions in the area.
The characters in Luhtasaari’s winning proposal are playful and enrich the schooll environment. Image: Ninni Luhtasaari - www.ninniluhtasaari.com
The execution of the work starts next. Public Art Agency prepares the contracts, sets up necessary meetings between the artists, architect and the client and supports the artist throughout the whole realisation process. The art coordinator secures that all the rising questions both from the artists side and the client side are being looked after and the communication between different stakeholders runs smoothly. Luhtasaari’s art work will be revealed together with the opening of the school in 2023.
The different sized parts of the piece will be situated allover the school. Image: Ninni Luhtasaari - www.ninniluhtasaari.com - architectural visualisation: Verstas Arkkitehdit
As a relatively new name in the Finnish public art field Luhtasaari is previously well-known for her charming characters both realised with ceramics and embroidery techniques. Samples of Luhtasaari’s previous work are presented in the images below as well as on her website www.ninniluhtasaari.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/ninniluhtasaari
More information:
Art coordinator: Maija Kovari - 044 502 3252
Image: Ninni Luhtasaari - www.ninniluhtasaari.com