The Mänttä Art Festival is the largest summer exhibition of Finnish contemporary art. 2021 exhibition title was Erehtyminen / To Err Is Human and it presented 47 artists or artist groups. The exhibition highlighted the diversity of contemporary art in artistic mediums, styles, perspectives, languages and nationalities. Almost half of the artists came from multicultural background.

The Curator

The XXV Mänttä Art Festival organisation elected Anna Ruth as the curator for the 2021 exhibition. Canadian-raised and currently settled in Jyväskylä, Ruth is a visual artist, award-winning art event organiser and versatile cultural activist. In recent years, Ruth has enriched the cultural scene of her adopted home city with several innovative cultural projects. Anna Ruth has participated in exhibitions in several countries and her artworks have been acquired by various art collections in Finland and abroad. The Mänttä Art Festival has been important to Ruth for many years. Her relationship with the Art Festival was established already in 2002, the year of her arrival, and since then, she has visited every Mänttä Art Festival exhibition with the exception of one. Read more!

Featured artists

Mänttä Art Festival 2021 presented 47 artists or artist groups. Individually, 62 artists participated in the exhibition as many work in pairs or as groups. The exhibition highlighted the diversity of contemporary art in artistic mediums, styles, perspectives, languages and nationalities. Out of the 62 artists, 55 was shown in Mänttä for the first time. Almost half of the artists came from multicultural backgrounds. Their personal histories are from Afghanistan, Bahrain, Colombia, Hungary, Italy, Intiaan, Iraq, Iran, Japan, Mexico, and Pakistan among others. Read more!