IHME Contemporary Art Festival
IHME Contemporary Art Festival (between 2009-2018), since year 2019 known as IHME Helsinki is a contemporary art organization maintained by Pro Arte Foundation Finland, and supported by Kone Foundation, Saastamoinen Foundation and Abakanowicz Arts and Culture Charitable Foundation (until 2025). Between years 2009 and 2018 the festival included a public work of art, a varied programme of events around the artwork, and educational art projects. IHME Project, commissioned by the Festival, was realised in the public realm. A varied Festival programme ranging from artist talks to film screenings opened the IHME Project for discussion and debate and was free to attend. IHME also offered an art education programme, IHME School, with various activities. The word "ihme" means a wonder or a miracle in Finnish.
In 2019 the contemporary art festival changed its name as IHME Helsinki (also IHME) and re-organized its activities to become an organization that situates its activities in a dialogue between art, science and climate work. IHME’s core activity is still the annual staging of a new artwork, together with an artist and Finnish and foreign partners, in public space in Finland and abroad. IHME’s goal is to promote eco-social education, a sustainable, democratic society, and a good life on many levels. Due to the changes in operation the festival event has been abandoned and speaking programs and events are now organized all year round.
Pro Arte Foundation Finland seeks to promote art as a resource for democratic society, and as an important part of human life and everyday existence. The Foundation's aim is to enhance the status and visibility of visual art, to improve the relationship between visual art and the public, and to make it more accessible. The Foundation's work is international in scope and directed at anyone interested in culture. The advisory board of IHME invites the artist to conceive the project, and also plans the other programme. Until year 2019 the advisory board of the foundation was: fi:Tuula Arkio (chair), fi:Leevi Haapala, Hanna Johansson, Paula Toppila, and Timo Valjakka. The current advisory board includes Ute Meta Bauer, Hanna Guttorm, Maria Lind, Antti Majava and Paula Toppila as the chair of the board.