In our calendar, you will find all our current, upcoming and past events. Let’s make a date!
Current and Upcoming Events
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More info coming soon.
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The next edition of Southnord Artfest lands in Helsinki in 2026. While the full programme is still under development, plans are already underway for a headline exhibition and a dynamic series of events in collaboration with one of the city’s leading art institutions.
Image: Moko is Future (2020). Video still (cropped) courtesy of Jeannette Ehlers. Cinematography by Christian Brems and Mads Hoppe.
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The Other Side of the Mountain opens with a keynote by Minna Salami, an author and social critic whose book Sensuous Knowledge: A Black Feminist Approach for Everyone inspired the exhibition title. In her keynote, Minna will open up the story of a mountain and reflect on the exhibition’s themes through the lens of Sensuous Knowledge. This is followed by artist presentations featuring Adji Dieye, Akinbode Akinbiyi, Emeka Ogboh, Ibrahim Mahama, Jeannette Ehlers, Karl Ohiri, Liisa-Irmelen Liwata, Loulou Cherinet, Lungiswa Gqunta, and Sandra Mujinga, all featured in the exhibition.
Place: Bio Rex
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Akinbode Akinbiyi is a Berlin-based, British-born Nigerian artist whose primary photographic focus is large, sprawling megacities — slowly wandering and meandering the highways and byways in an attempt to understand and deeply engage with the modern metropolis. We have invited Akinbode to the Finnish Museum of Photography to speak in depth about his rich and long practice.
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This walking and photographing workshop facilitated by the renowned photographer Akinbode Akinbiyi will take place in eastern Helsinki. The workshop prioritises youth and young adults who are interested in expanding their skills of observation and street photography.Date: 17 October 2026
Place: Cultural Centre Stoa, Terraario
Time: 10:00-16:00Date: 18 October 2026
Place: Cultural Centre Stoa, Terraario
Time: 12:00-18:00
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Roots En Route is a multi-sensory installation by four artists who will create a multi-sensory installation in dialogue with this special site — examining rootedness and displacement; asking what grows where it was planted and what survives the crossing. The African plants that fill these glasshouses carry their own histories of movement and adaptation.
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In this workshop for kids, we explore different printing techniques together. For children ages 6+. Drop-in and free of charge.
Place: Oodi, Kuutio, 2nd Floor
More info to follow.
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Join us for our Art Cruise Afterwork at sea, on board Tallink Silja Line, as we sail from Stockholm to Helsinki for the Artfest 2026. We follow the trail of artist Emeka Ogboh’s Danfo bus straight into the main exhibition The Other Side of the Mountain at Amos Rex. The day spent in Helsinki will also give you a chance to experience Roots En Route, our multi-sensory exhibition in dialogue with the plants at Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden.
Place: Värtahamnen Terminal
Time: 16:30
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A symposium centred on the works of Lebo Tlali and Sasha Huber, exploring Namibia's colonial history through film, performance and critical dialogue, anchored by the story of Rosa Emilia Clay (1875–1959).
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The C& Center of Unfinished Business is a reading room that offers an extraordinary, sometimes disconcerting selection of books connected to the topic of colonialism in various ways – from German colonization to Congolese fashion to twenty-first-century capital markets, it stretches into many different areas affected. This pop-up contains books from C&'s collection curated by Ethel-Ruth Tawe. For this Helsinki edition, Southnord will be contributing our collection of art reference books to the pop-up library.
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The C& Center of Unfinished Business pop-up library will be officially opened with readings, a panel discussion and the celebration of the launch of Southnord Vol. 1: 2023-2026 a brand-new publication documenting the first three years of Southnord’s existence and activities.
More details to follow.
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A specially curated deep listening session that explores the visceral effects of sound on the body and psyche together with mezzosoprano Isabella Shaw.
More details to follow.
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The panel discussion will explore the state of arts education in the Nordic region and beyond, with a particular focus on access and representation, within contemporary art institutions. Central to the conversation is the question of who is given visibility, opportunity, and authority within the arts sector, and why Afro-Nordic contemporary art curators, programmers, directors, and cultural leaders remain underrepresented in countries such as Finland despite growing conversations around diversity and inclusion.
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We Should All Be Dreaming is an ongoing collaborative art and activism project by choreographer Sonya Lindfors and writer Maryan Abdulkarim that focuses on the radical potential of dreams to be both restorative and subversive. They have a simple suggestion: we should all dream in a fundamental, utopian way about a shared future.
More details to follow.
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What does it mean to hold a political position — not just intellectually, but in the body? How do political ideas take shape in and through the body? Conviction, resistance, and belonging are not only theorised but felt, carried, and performed in everyday life. We invite you to an evening exploring embodied politics together with Marie-Louise Richards and Sall Lam Toro, bringing together two distinct practices in conversation: thought and movement, proposition and gesture.
More details to follow.
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A weekend celebration of Afrodiasporic voices in literature, bringing together poets, authors and researchers from across the Nordic countries for readings, dialogues and exchanges with the Helsinki public.
Date: 7 November 2026
Place: Oodi, Saarikoski Rug, 3rd Floor
Time: 14:00 – 17:00Date: 8 November 2026
Place: Oodi, Maijansali, 1st Floor
Time: 14:00 – 19:00
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Migratory Notes is a participatory artwork and dinner event by Emeka Ogboh,exploring migration and diversity in contemporary urban life through food, drink and sound. Limited spaces, booking details to follow.
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Who decides what stories from the Black Nordic experience are worth preserving? Who has the authority to collect, interpret and narrate Black Nordic history? This panel brings together Black archivists, scholars and community organisers from Sweden and Norway who are actively constructing new infrastructures for Black Nordic memory.
More details to follow.
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Maran is a performance by Amina Seid Tahir, staged for a reclined audience. In a dark, misty room, she moves to the rhythm of bells braided into her hair, then sits before her krar, an Eritrean lyre, and plays. Its strings carry songs of resistance alongside soft, lulling melodies. The sounds call the room to rest and to dreams, to water seeds for new worlds to grow. The performance asks how the Nordic mythological figure of the Mare and the instrument krar might function as carriers of dreams, rest and resilience for the queer Afro-Nordic community.
More details to follow.
2026 Events
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Join illustrator and author Andrea Pippins for a special reading of Young, Gifted and Black, Too(illustrated by Pippins), a vibrant celebration of extraordinary leaders, thinkers, and creators from around the world.
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Join us for our second collections exhibition at Southnord. Opening on the 4 February, this exhibition brings together eight diverse artistic practices preoccupied with landscape identity; ancestral memory; intertwined geographies; the relationship between land and body; consumerism and imperial capitalism.
Image:
Michelle Eistrup, Mineral Emissaries, Edelopal Terra Mineralia (2020)
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In this guided tour at Liljevalchs, produced in collaboration with Southnord, David Nzinga invites participants to an in-depth and personal journey through When We See Us. For one hour, he will use ten selected images as starting points for a conversation at the intersection of art, experience and identity.
Image: Jessica Wikström
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As part of our Open Call for the Southnord Residency 2026, our previous resident, Max Diallo Jakobsen, will host a webinar about his time in Lusaka. This is an excellent opportunity for applicants to hear from a residency alumni.
Image: Maingaila Muvundika
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This year, Southnord will be hosting a webinar with key residency spaces with connections to the Continent in an effort to connect Afro-Nordic artists with a contemporary African art context.
Image: LuCAC
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In honour of International Women's Day, join us for a richly illuminating talk with bestselling author Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström at the When We See Us exhibition at Liljevalchs.
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We are excited to be collaborating with Kulturhuset Stadsteatern for Kulturnatten to bring you a screening of four shorts by Afro-Swedish filmmakers. This is an evening curated by Marcia Harvey Isaksson.
Image: Still from I Think Of Silences When I Think Of You by Jonelle Twum
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Southnord will in collaboration with the World Culture Museums Konstfack, the Nordic Art Association, the Swedish Artists' Council/IASPIS host an artistic residency with Banji Chona and Katarina Spik Skum in the Spring of 2026.
Image: curtesy of Ethnografiska
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Join us for an immersive performance by Freddy Houndekindo dubbed Becoming Tree, which unfolds monthly throughout the entire duration of When We See Us at Liljevalchs. Rooted in dance and movement, the work turns the performer’s body into a vessel of rhythm, voice, and breath — where labor and recovery coexist in cycles of repetition and renewal.
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In this tour Moves and Imagination of When We See Us at Liljevalchs, participants experience the paintings through a dancer's lens. Join the esteemed choreographer and movement practitioner Niki Awandee as she moves us through 4-5 works and illustrates them through dance.
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We welcome you to join brand strategist and communicator Georgètte Dwomoh-Appiah for Dressed in Power – an invitation to look at When We See Us at Liljevalchs through a fashion enthusiast's lens.
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As part of Southnord Artfest 2026, a travelling danfo bus is making its way north from Berlin, through Copenhagen and Stockholm, before it continues on to Helsinki. This bus forms a part of an installation by artist Emeka Ogboh for the Artfest’s headline exhibition The Other Side of the Mountain at Amos Rex.
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This October, Liljevalchs will open the doors to When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting, a landmark exhibition celebrating 100 years of Black portraiture. Southnord is proud to be programming a series of activations alongside this extraordinary show, bringing new perspectives and dialogues to Stockholm. Full programme out soon.
Image: Constant 3, Sungi Mulengeya (2019)
2025 Events
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We are thrilled to launch the Southnord Residency Programme, a unique opportunity for visual artists and curators of African decent situated in the Nordics to spend time with their practices, while immersed in a contemporary African art context. Join us for a series of webinars featuring some of the amazing independent art spaces operating in different countries.
Image: Lusaka Contemporary Art Centre
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Join us as we open Southnord's inaugural collection exhibition, Mindscape. The exhibition presents a selection of works from the ever-growing art collection that Southnord is investing in. The works portray human figures in different forms and techniques, most of them in repose or deep contemplation.
Image: Diana Agunbiade-Kolawole
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Join us for inna-Mindscape, a multi-layered sonic exploration that transforms the Southnord space and Mindscape exhibition into a live conversation between sound, thought, and presence.
Image: Marque Gilmore, inna Alchemist (cropped)
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Join us for Mindful Hands, a workshop by Alicia Samson which invites you to slow down, tune in and move with the quiet rhythm of clay making. There’s no rush here, no pressure to create a perfect piece—just an open space to explore, discover and co-create with the clay.
Image: Inward by Alicia Samson
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Southnord invites you to embark on an enriching and informative walk I slavhandelns fotspår (In the footsteps of the Slave Trade) followed by a boat ride to Liljevalchs for the opening of When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting, a landmark exhibition celebrating 100 years of Black portraiture exhibition.
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Southnord presents the concert "Afro Nordic Blue" in collaboration with Liljevalchs as part of the program for the exhibition "When We See Us: A Century of Black Figurative Painting", internationally acclaimed as one of the most significant exhibitions of our time.
Image: Sofia Jernberg
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Join us for a gathering and presentation of Shying a Way, a publication/research notebook created at the conclusion of a three-year collaboration between CCA, Lagos and Uniarts Helsinki’s Academy of Fine Art as a proposal for a future distributed university.
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Join Marcia on an explorative walk-through of the exhibition “When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting” focusing on the women depicted in the exhibition. From those in repose, in revelry and in the everyday; Marcia is interested in women as emancipated, sensual and spiritual beings.
Find out more
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Join us for the third edition of the Southnord UP NEXT exhibition. The year we present Viola Nimuhamya, an Ugandan-born artist based in Bergen, Norway. Her practice centers on storytelling as a way of processing personal and collective memory, using installation, fiber art and sculpture, to create works that are both tactile and emotionally resonant.
Image: Work by Viola Nimuhamya
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Southnord invites you and your little ones to a book reading with child educator, Vera Nyblom. This is the first of a series of children and youth programs we have prepared as part of the When We See Us exhibition at Liljevalchs.
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Southnord invites you to this guided session, Stanley Nyoni — a master facilitator, energy healer, personal and leadership coach — will hold space for meditation and reflection inspired by the When We See Us exhibition.
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Join us for an immersive performance by Freddy Houndekindo dubbed Becoming Tree, which unfolds monthly throughout the entire duration of When We See Us at Liljevalchs. Rooted in dance and movement, the work turns the performer’s body into a vessel of rhythm, voice, and breath — where labor and recovery coexist in cycles of repetition and renewal.
2024 Events
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During the Southnord x Kulturhuset artfest there will be three programme weekends, each with their own theme. This closing weekend themed CARING, will focus on care for oneself, for others, for nature. We will explore alternative ways of believing and maintaining our spiritual and mental health through art. The weekend will be filled with film viewings, performances, workshops, art chats and more! Learn more..
Photo credit: Charging Change, 2nd Movement, Michelle Eistrup
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Southnord presents an exclusive screening of a short film by Ali Quraishi, capturing the creation process of Fatima Moalim’s remarkable work featured in The Threshold Is A Prism exhibition at Kulturhuset. Find out more…
Photograph by Leonard Stenberg
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Southnord teams up with Fotografiska to activate the Cindy Sherman exhibition with one evening of talks and performance featuring the photography platform Rise and Shoot as well as the artist, composer, musician João Renato Orecchia Zúñiga.
Image: João Orecchia, photographer Stella Oliver
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Join us for the second edition of the UP NEXT exhibition, curated by Kihwa-Endale, where we invite young black artists to be advocates and catalysts for change, daring to re-imagine the world we live in and shaping the future to come.
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Southnord is proud to present Mothers and Daughters, an evening of poetry, prose and music –a dialogue between T.I.E and Kayo Mpoyi. This performance is presented in connection with Frida Orupabo’s solo exhibition at Bonnier Konsthall this fall. Find out more...
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Southnord teams up with Yemisi Wilson for an exhibition about identity, loss and reconciliation. Yemisi portrays and honors two strong women who have been important to their families - her paternal and maternal grandmothers. She examines what it means to have roots from Nigeria, and roots in Sweden. Find out more...
2023 Events
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Join us on 7 September for a double celebration, as we open our doors, launch our platform, and present this autumn’s astounding program, which promises to be a dynamic celebration of Afro-Nordic creativity. It is also the opening of our UP NEXT open call winner Alexandra das Neves Lehmann ‘s exhibition “Earthbound: A Visual Journey of Earth’s Embrace”.
Image: Alexandra das Neves Lehmann
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“Her(e)itage” is a design collaboration between Southnord x Svenskt Tenn that features four designers and artists based in the Nordics - Damien Ajavon (NO), Lincoln Kayiwa (FI), Nkuli Mlangeni-Berg (SE), and Theresa Traore Dahlberg (SE). Together they carry African craft traditions and stories forward to future generations while creating in the here and now. The unique products developed will be presented in an exhibition at the Svenskt Tenn store in Stockholm, that will end on 18 October.
Image: Ndaté Yalla Mbodj, Damien Ajavon
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Textile artist Ismaila Fatty will be showing new textile sculptures in his first solo show at Southnord. For this exhibition, Ismaila has explored up-cycling traditional Swedish rag-rugs, hand-dying them using traditional Gambian tie-dye techniques, shaping them to create something new - a meeting of two cultures. Join us for the opening party on 5 October 16:00-20:00, during Stockholm Craft Week. The exhibition will continue until 21 October. Opening hours Thur-Fri 12:00-18:00, Sat 12:00-16:00. During November the exhibition can be visited by appointment only. Welcome!
Photo credit: Mattias Lindbäck
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Southnord x GIBCA invites you to join us as we launch our autumn programme at Röda Sten Konsthall. This afternoon of communing will include a performance lecture by John-Paul Zaccarini, PhD, Professor of Performing Arts at Stockholm University of the Arts. “MixRace MixTape” is a stand-up, hip-hop, spoken word journey of passion, hope and humour that takes you on a lush poetic journey through everyday racism, homophobia and male privilege.
Photo credit: Andrea Davis-Kronlund
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Southnord x På Sergels torg presents DRUM & PAINT an outdoor exhibition that highlights the lives of Norwegian jazz musician Pete Brown, his adopted sister singer and actress Jossie Pollard and their grandmother Emilia Brown. Archival images will be placed in dialogue with the Sweden-based South African jazz musician, poet, painter Lefifi Tladi’s musical and improvisational paintings. The exhibition ends on 6 November.
Photo credit: Photographer unknown, Nasjonalbiblioteket, Norway.
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Southnord x HOBO presents South African-born, Swedish-based artists Lefifi Tladi and Mzwakhe Hlatshwayo. Painter, poet, musician Lefifi Tladi and jazz musician Mzwakhe Hlatshwayo and the Ingoma Project will meet in an improvised jam session over the course of three evenings.
Photo credit: Tristan Lindquist
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For the Southnord Artfest, FutureBrownSpace takes over the Kulturhuset Stadsteatern outdoor screen with a video installation that centers black and brown bodies in the city. The work, Spaces of FutureBrown is part of the FutureBrownSpace research project, headed by John-Paul Zaccarini, Professor of Performing Arts for Bodily and Vocal Practices at Stockholm University of the Arts. It will be shown from 23 October to 5 November on the large screen above the main entrance.
FutureBrownSpace is a creative space of recovery, discovery and project/artist development, free from the white gaze. It is designed for POC who operate within largely white fields/institutions and offers them breathing space to uncensor themselves. It is a trans-disciplinary research project Funded by Swedish Research Council and Stockholm University of the Arts.
Photo credit: Still image from AfroSwede by FutureBrownSpace.
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Southnord x Kulturhuset welcome you to the grand opening of the Southnord artfest, the base of which is the group exhibition The Threshold is a Prism, featuring 20 artists of African descent with ties to the Nordic region, including some of the foremost contemporary artists working today, some hidden gems and some legendary forerunners.
Photo credit: Only a fool fights the sun, Rafiki
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During the Southnord x Kulturhuset artfest there will be three programme weekends, each with their own theme. This opening weekend themed SHARING, will focus on sharing space and time, knowledge and experience, stories and art. We open the exhibition The Threshold is a Prism with a performance by artist Diana Agunbiade-Kolawole who will create new works on site. The weekend continues with a visual poetry evening in collaboration with the Poetic Phontheque, story-time for children, drawing and portrait workshops for youth, performances, film viewings in collaboration with Cinemafrica, as well as curator and artist chat. The entire detailed programme will be released on 7 October.
Photo credit: KA, Dina El Kaisy Friemuth. Photographer: Diara Sow
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Southnord x MDT are collaborating to present two iterations of the DEEP DIVE, a community and empowerment workshop by the multidisciplinary artists and siblings Adam and Amina Seid Tahir that delves into the inspiration for their piece SEVERAL ATTEMPTS AT BRAIDING MY WAY HOME.
Photo credit: Bea Borgers
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During the Southnord x Kulturhuset artfest there will be three programme weekends, each with their own theme. This middle weekend themed DIGGING, will focus on archives - personal and public, the writing and re-writing of history, knowledge gaps and attempts to fill in and retrace erased histories. We will engage with archives as a site for remembrance and resistance. This weekend will be filled with film viewings, a deep listening session, pop-up archives from around the Nordics, art chats and lectures. The entire detailed programme will be released on 7 September. Find out more…
Photo credit: 08-18 (Past Perfect), Santiago Mostyn. Photographer: Alexandra de Cossette