(Picture: OAF Artistic Team at Pertti’s Choice shop & gallery at spring 2024)
More than 400 artists from various fields applied to the Outsider Art Festival this year, from which 33 artists and groups were selected. It’s time to announce the selections! Congratulations to the artists!
OAF 2024 artists are: Petri Keckman, Kanimaattorit, Satu & Maima Tani, Aleksi Leskinen, Kardo Shiwan, Vahid Goodarzpour, Pure, Noora Juppi, Fri Nilas Lindell, Harold Hejazi, Minni Välipakka, Isaque Sanches, Milo Ruut, Mikael Diedrich Gripentrog, Tom Runeberg, Kristiina Murola, Collins Ngiesi, Madde Matilda, Stella Massa, Ondi, MC Zen & Urbaani unelma, Timjune Tianjun Li, Anton Amit, Milla Pihlajamäki, Tanja Huntus, Matti Salmela, Jussi Ruusulampi, Tonya (Ton) Melnyk & Masha Ravlyk, Ville Färsaaret, Kai-Erik Relanti and Juhani Rusanen.
The OAF programme is curated on the principle of inclusive curation. The artists were selected by the OAF artistic team, which includes a multidisciplinary group of outsider artists and art mentors. Two international curators, Jennifer Gilbert (UK) and Pierre Leichner (CA), were also involved.
Jaana Miettinen, Johanna Konttinen, Silja Pasila, Pekka Elomaa and Jani Leinonen from the visual arts working group describe this year’s programme as particularly diverse. “The programme is diverse in terms of themes, techniques and artists. We think it’s a good showcase of what outsider art can be.”
Aleksis Salusjärvi and Sanni Purhonen, the curators of the literature programme, curated new kind writers to the festival, whose works they describe as literature outside known literature. “It’s really a revolution that opens up remarkably original textual worlds. A mosaic of different artists and styles. There is visual and stage poetry, new origin myths and parallel worlds created by texts. The texts are united by introspection and experientiality.”
Music programme curators Riikka Hänninen, Felix Lybeck and Sami Helle were surprised by the diversity of the applicants. “The selection process was challenging but enjoyable. There were so many applicants and a huge variety of styles. It will be great to see the performers on stage in August, bringing joy to the festival guests,” said Sami Helle.
Panu Prinssi Palm and Ilona Ahti curated the film programme. “This year we have a truly open-minded spirit, with artists from diverse backgrounds showing the works of their souls. The main element is nature and man’s relationship with it. On the one hand the relationship is dark and scary, on the other hand fear can be met with humour and sensitivity. There are also some otherworldly visual spectacles, which we can’t help but recommend seeing!”
Henry Saarikko and Anne Naukkarinen, curators of the performing arts programme, were part of the artistic team for the first time. Naukkarinen reflected on what performance art can be and how the definition of performance art lives on through new works and artists. According to Saarikko, the curatorial work was exciting. “I didn’t really know anything about curating. But it was fun and I got help at different stages of the work. I really hope that the public will find their way to the events, and that the artists will get a good round of applause!”
Read more about the 2024 artists here
Check out the OAF’s model for inclusive curating here
