The With the River Collective was in residency at Villa Eläintarha during May 2026. It consists of eight Nordic artists: Eija Mäkivuoti, Jessica Franzén, Jón Sonni Jensen, Mari Keski-Korsu, Matilda Löytty, Jouko Alapartanen, Alexandra Stroganova and Dan Helgi í Gong. It is a joint artistic process – a multidisciplinary and multidimensional endeavour to comprehend our general connection with fluid bodies, watery borders and border-crossings through artistic processes and production. Artists in the collective work across a variety of disciplines and artistic practices, including painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, photography, video, audio, participatory performance, text-based and ritualistic practices, as well as artistic research. Beginning in 2023, the collective has carried out on-site fieldwork across the three represented countries: Sweden, the Faroe Islands, and Finland.
The work is generously supported by the Kone Foundation (2025-2026), Nordic Culture Fund & Tjaldur – Friendship Association Finland-Faroe Islands (2023-2025), and implemented in partnership with Jala Art Association (2023), Faroese Folk High School (2025), Bioart society and Kulturhus Björkboda – KUBU (2026).
Photo Egle Oddo