The story of Visual Festival began in 2018 in Joensuu, Eastern Finland, with the ambition to highlight the possibilities that visual culture can offer both locally and internationally. The goal was to bring together artists, audiences, participants, and creators from near and far. Darkness – a natural resource very familiar to us, but exotic and rare elsewhere – creates unique opportunities for presenting visual content. In November and December, Eastern Finland has little natural light, which makes it the perfect time to organize a light festival in Botania’s outdoor garden.

Step into a time machine and experience the previous years of Visual Festival virtually at 360panorama.fi

We want to be an inspiring, surprising, and innovative meeting place for visual art – for both creators and audiences. Our goal is to bring balance to everyday life: joy, light, and opportunities to pause, experience, enjoy, and reflect. We also want to provide our artists with a free and creative environment that inspires play and experimentation. That is why we invite artists from around the world to Visual Festival – to realize experimental projects, build networks, and enjoy the pure and unique urban nature and darkness.

The goal of Visual Festival is to be internationally known and respected – both from the perspective of artists and audiences.

In the future, we aim to:

- create a platform for both short-term and permanent projects

- realize projects that combine education and art

- enable collaboration between art and science, and explore new intersections with nature

- offer a year-round residency program for artists from around the world

- provide young artists with opportunities to learn, develop, network, and experiment

- strengthen the cultural and touristic appeal of Joensuu, North Karelia, and Eastern Finland

- offer audiences diverse and unique experiences: moments to pause, move, be inspired, and feel the power of light in the midst of darkness

- create unique projects together, turning the festival into a living artwork