Ars Fennica 2025

Bley typically paints on large-scale canvases laid flat on the floor. She pours paint directly onto the surface, letting it spread freely into landscape-like formations, where thin washes alternate with thicker, more sculptural textures. At times she even uses dyed snow, allowing it to melt slowly and merge unpredictably into the work. The subject matter emerges gradually, inhabiting a space between representation and abstraction.

Bley earned her bachelor’s degree from the Oslo Academy of Fine Arts in 2011 and her master’s from London’s Royal College of Art in 2015. Born in Sweden, she now lives and works in Oslo.

Artworks in the Ars Fennica 2025 exhibition:

Cheek on Cheek, 2024. Oil and acrylic on linen canvas.

Immune, 2024. Oil and acrylic on linen canvas.

Leaden Fall, 2024. Oil and acrylic on linen canvas.

No way was clear, no light unbroken, 2023. Oil and acrylic on linen canvas.

Eyeless Split, 2025. Oil, acrylics, salt and snow on linen canvas.

Working with moulds taken from real objects, Persson casts his forms in silicone. The coloured, flexible material lends his sculptures a recognisable presence while allowing them to remain open to shifting interpretations. His surreal scenes may be unforgiving and scarred, yet they also radiate warmth and compassion.   

Persson graduated from the Umeå Academy of Fine Arts in 1993 and continued his studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm. Based in Stockholm, he is also well known in Sweden for his public artworks.

Artworks in the Ars Fennica 2025 exhibition:

Body of Medusa, 2025. Silicone.

Waiting for High Water, 2025. Silicone.

The Magical Moment of Silence, 2025. Silicone.

Into the Bone, 2025. Silicone.

In Ruscica’s works, things are constantly in flux – stretching, bending and transcending established boundaries. Their works playfully challenge our attempts to define and categorise, giving way instead to ambiguity, experientiality and unfixity. 

Ruscica works with moving and printed images, sculpture and performance. They hold a bachelor’s degree from Chelsea College of Art & Design in London (2002) and a Master’s degree in Fine Arts from the Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki (2007). Born in Finland and raised in Italy, the artist lives and works in Helsinki.

Artworks in the Ars Fennica 2025 exhibition:

A Shapeless Caprice (portrait of a musician – Linda Fredriksson), 2025. Two channel video installation, eight improvised takes, shuffle play, stereo sound, endless duration (total duration of video material 133 min).

The Inked (balancing act), 2025. Mural.

The Inked (system of reattachment), 2025. Mural.

Vihriälä reflects on the challenges of living a life aligned with one’s values amid conflicting desires, temptations, and the drive to experience or possess as much as possible. Her large-scale works emphasise the tactile qualities of materials, exploring contrasts between durable and fragile, hard and soft. She also experiments with transparency, reflections, and shadows to enrich the visual experience of her art. 

Based in Tampere, Vihriälä graduated from the Estonian Academy of Arts in 2000 and completed her sculpture studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki in 2003. She has created numerous public artworks for sites across Finland.

Artworks in the Ars Fennica 2025 exhibition:

Allure, 2025. Candy, wire.

Mercedes-Benz G-class, 2022. Funeral ribbons.

Sense, 2025. Painted wire, aluminium, plastic, wood.

Beyond Japan, Kataoka has held positions at the Hayward Gallery in London from 2007 to 2009 as International Curator; she has also acted as Co-Artistic Director for the 9th Gwangju Biennale (2012), Artistic Director for the 21st Biennale of Sydney (2018) and Artistic Director for the Aichi Triennale 2022. Kataoka served as a Board Member (2014–2022) and the President (2020–2022) of CIMAM (International Committee for Museums and Collections of Modern Art). 

At Mori Art Museum, Kataoka has curated a number of mid-career survey shows of Asian artist including Tsuyoshi Ozawa (2004), Ai Weiwei (2009), Lee Bul (2012), Makoto Aida (2012), Lee Mingwei (2014) , NS Harsha (2017) and Chiharu Shiota (2019) while co-curated regional shows including SUNSHOWER : Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now (2017) and Roppongi Crossing: Contemporary Japanese Art in 2004 and 2013.  

Kataoka frequently writes, lectures, and juries on contemporary art from Japan, Asia and beyond.