The international alumni residency programme of the Academy of Fine Arts of the University of the Arts Helsinki was established in partnership with Saastamoinen Foundation. It offers alumni from the Academy of Fine Arts the opportunity to further their artistic practice and expand their professional networks through fully funded residencies at renowned international residency centers.

The programme includes partnership residencies with the following organisations: ISCP – International Studio & Curatorial Program (New York, USA), LIFT – Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (Canada), joint residency of Cove Park and Scottish Sculpture Workshop (Scotland), and Jan van Eyck Academie (Maastricht, the Netherlands).

Each year, one artist is selected for each residency. The selections are organised four times annually – two in the spring and two in the autumn. A three-member international jury carries out the pre-selection for each round, with two members drawn from the international curatorial field and one from the Academy of Fine Arts. The final decision is made by the hosting residency organisation.

In addition to these four residencies, the Foundation also enables one artist to take up a fully funded residency at the Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam, provided they are accepted through the academy’s independent selection process.

Detailed application guidelines will be made available closer to each application period on the Uniarts website as well as on Saastamoinen Foundation’s channels.

International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP)

Founded in 1994, the International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) in New York City supports the creative development of artists and curators from around the world and promotes exchange through residencies and public programs. Each of the 35 residents are provided with a private studio in a three-story renovated printing factory, monthly individual meetings with visiting critics, monthly field trips, invitations to private receptions, open studios events three times a year, free membership at a printmaking studio, use of basic tools and video equipment, and the opportunity to give a public talk. With over 2,250 alumni from more than 105 countries, ISCP hosts approximately 100 residents per year. The application is intended for graduates of the Academy of Fine Arts who have been working professionally for at least five years. There is no age limit. The duration of the residency is six months.

The residency programme includes a small apartment located near ISCP.

LIFT- Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto

The artist residency at LIFT, gives artists unique access to our analogue filmmaking resources. As an artist-run charity with a forty-year history, LIFT has maintained equipment that dates back to when analogue filmmaking was in its heyday, giving the curious film artist an incredible array of possible tools. Now in its sixth year, LIFT’s artistic residency partnership with the Academy of Fine Arts Helsinki has fostered exciting explorations in alternative film processing rephotography, optical printing and expanded, multi projector cinema performances. Each artist has thrown themselves into the residency and gone beyond their own expectations of what they would be able to learn and create in a three-month time.

Cove Park & Scottish Sculpture Workshop, Scotland – “ The Ecologies in the Making: Sculpting Futures Residency”

The Ecologies in the Making: Sculpting Futures Residency is a unique four-month programme, set up to support an MFA or DFA alumni of the Academy of Fine Arts Helsinki to further their sculptural practice through extended research and making time in Scotland. The residency, split between Cove Park and Scottish Sculpture Workshop, is an opportunity for the selected Finnish artist to re-think and push their sculptural practice in a time of ecological crisis. Over the past 4 years the programme has supported artists working in Stone, Seaweed, Cork and Shell – pushing workshop practice and expanding their material exploration.

Jan van Eyck Academie

The Jan van Eyck Academie is a multidisciplinary post-academic institute in Maastricht, the Netherlands, providing international artists, designers (fashion, graphic, food, etc.), curators, (landscape) architects, writers, and others with the time, space, and expertise needed to further expand their practice and ramify their artistic endeavours. Participants can make use of all academy facilities, labs, departments, and networks, as well as partake in shaping the public programme of events. Committed to exploring the agency, roles, and civic significance of art, design, and other creative practices in relation to climate change, environmental breakdown, and their manifold effects, the Jan van Eyck lays out a multiform environment that supports and nourishes participants’ artistic and intellectual versatility and encourages cross-sector collaborations. Forming a tight cohort, the Jan van Eyck community promotes development through plurality and knowledge exchange and concerns itself with contexts and conditions surrounding each participant’s artistic practice.

Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten

Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam is a renowned two-year international post-academic residency programme that offers artists a space to delve deeply into their practice and explore new directions in contemporary artistic expression. Each year, 24 practitioners are selected—roughly half from the Netherlands and half from elsewhere—through a highly competitive, multi-stage selection process that draws over 1,500 applications from more than 120 countries.

Rijksakademie functions as a multidisciplinary and critically experimental community. Up to 50 artists work in parallel, developing their practices in dialogue with peers, mentors, and visiting international curators. The residency provides each artist with a private studio, access to specialised technical workshops, expert guidance, a rich library, and an environment that supports both risk-taking and reflection.

Founded in 1870, Rijksakademie has played a significant role in shaping contemporary art discourse. Alumni works are regularly presented at major international exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale, documenta, and the Gwangju Biennale, and are included in the collections of institutions such as the Stedelijk Museum, Tate Modern, MoMA, the Centre Pompidou, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.

Alumni include internationally recognised artists such as Jennifer Tee, Otobong Nkanga, Monira Al Qadiri, and Rineke Dijkstra—testament to the programme’s enduring impact on artistic thinking and practice globally.

From Finland, Tero Nauha (1999–2000; visiting artist 2024), Erkka Nissinen (2007–2008), Miklós Gaál (2008–2009), Pilvi Takala (2009–2010), and Artor Jesus Inkerö (2019–2021) have participated in the Rijksakademie residency, contributing to and expanding the international conversation on contemporary art.

Since 2015, Saastamoinen Foundation has supported residency periods for artists who have graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts of Uniarts Helsinki and are admitted to the programme through Rijksakademie’s independent international selection process. Support is granted exclusively to artists selected through this rigorous and merit-based procedure.

Rijksakademie is committed to accessibility and equity, regardless of financial background. Its primary criteria remain artistic strength, originality, and potential for critical development.