WAM Museum of Contemporary Art has acquired a significant body of work by Turku-based artist Iiu Susiraja. The acquisition, completed in spring 2026, comprises 83 works, which will be added to the City of Turku Art Collection.

The acquisition strengthens the collection’s representation of both contemporary sculpture and the work of artists from the Southwest Finland region. Susiraja’s works also reinforce the presence of internationally recognised Turku-based artists within the City of Turku Art Collection.

“Susiraja’s extensive body of work can be utilised both in WAM’s own exhibitions and through loans to international museums. In doing so, we can proudly promote the visibility of both WAM and Finnish contemporary art around the world,” says Riina Kotilainen, Chief Curator of Collections at WAM.

The collection already includes fifteen works by Susiraja. Following this acquisition, the City of Turku Art Collection will hold nearly one hundred of her works, making it the largest museum collection of Susiraja’s work.

Iiu Susiraja Is an Internationally Renowned Contemporary Artist

Iiu Susiraja (b. 1975) is known for her photographic and video works. Through humour and sensitivity, she explores a wide range of themes related to the human experience. In her works, the artist employs both her own body and everyday objects in unexpected ways.

Susiraja, who lives and works in Turku, has established an international profile, and her work has been exhibited at venues including MoMA PS1 in New York. WAM presented a major exhibition of her work in 2024, shortly before the start of the museum’s renovation and expansion project.

Susiraja was awarded the William Thuring Prize in 2019 and the Finland Prize of the Ministry of Education and Culture in 2023. In May 2026, she received the Culture Award of the Southwest Finland Fund of the Finnish Cultural Foundation.

WAM Added 80 Works to the City of Turku Art Collection in 2025

In 2025, the City of Turku Art Collection grew by a total of 80 works. The collection was expanded through acquisitions funded by investment appropriations, the addition of public artworks, and donations to the museum.

In 2025, the City of Turku allocated €120,000 in investment funding for the development of the collection, enabling the acquisition of 14 works. These acquisitions reflect the museum’s collecting priorities, which emphasise contemporary spatial art and art from the Southwest Finland region. Acquisition proposals are reviewed by an acquisitions committee comprising WAM specialists.

Main image: Iiu Susiraja, Paketoitua liikettä 1, 2014. Turku City Art Collection.