Since 1950’s the Foundation/Association has promoted the opportunities of Finnish artists to work abroad. One of the main ways has been maintaining and renting studio houses in Italy and Spain. The studios are rented for Finnish or Finnish-based professional visual artists.
The Grassina Studio Building
Via L. Lippi 3
50012 Grassina
Italy
The building Casa Finlandese, situated on a high hill in Tuscany in the village of Grassina, in the vicinity of Florence, has working and residential facilities for four artists.
The building is part of a country estate dating back to the 16th century. It was renovated in 1988-1989 and in 2017-2018. Each studio comprises 28-57 m2, in addition there are shared facilities, e.g. a darkroom.
The Marbella Studio Building
Calle San Francisco 1
29600 Marbella
Spain
The studio building operations in Marbella carried out by the Studio Foundation will end at the end of 2024
The Marbella Studio Building is owned by the Finnish Artists’ Association, and the Studio Foundation has been renting the property.
The board of the Studio Foundation has decided to terminate the foundation’s lease agreement and end its operations in Marbella as part of the strategic process currently underway at the foundation. In the future, the foundation will focus on securing and strengthening our core domestic activities. The full strategy will be completed later in 2024.
We thank all the artists who have worked in the Marbella studio house over the years and recognize that working in the house has been very significant for many. However, interest in the Marbella studio house has clearly been decreasing in recent years, and we are aware that the location is too expensive for many.
The operations of the Grassina studio house in Italy will continue as usual.
The Marbella Studio Building
The Finnish Artists’ Association acquired the studio building, located on the Costa del Sol in Spain, in the 1950s. The building in the old city centre of Marbella, originally built in the 16th century, offers working and residential facilities for one or two artists at a time. The building was renovated in 1991.