Mami Kataoka and Arja Miller to Lead Environment and Cosmology-centred Helsinki Biennial 2027
The two museum directors from Tokyo’s Mori Art Museum and the Helsinki Art Museum will join forces to shape the fourth edition of Finland’s flagship international art event. Save to My Ocula
Japanese curator Mami Kataoka will join Helsinki Art Museum’s Arja Miller to co-curate Helsinki Biennial 2027 with the aim of creating an event that ‘encourages transcultural dialogue and fresh perspectives and shares universal views on the environment and cosmology’.
Kataoka brings an extensive network from across Asia which is hoped to open new channels for Finnish artists and audiences. As director of the Mori Art Museum since 2020, she is known for curatorial projects that address social themes and intercultural dialogue while situating art within global structures and cosmic balance.
Her record includes leading roles at the 21st Biennale of Sydney (2018), the 9th Gwangju Biennale (2012), and the Aichi Triennale 2022, alongside a role on the Documenta 16 Finding Committee.
Co-curator, Arja Miller, has led the Helsinki Art Museum and Helsinki Biennial since 2023 and focuses on site-specific, multisensory works probing universal themes and uncharted territories, keeping contemporary art in flux while reinforcing Helsinki’s international profile.
The 2027 announcement arrives as the 2025 Helsinki Biennial, curated by Blanca de la Torre and Kati Kivinen under the title Shelter: Below and Beyond, Becoming and Belonging, continues across Vallisaari Island and the Helsinki Art Museum until 21 September, with a focus on non-human protagonists. —[O]
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