Arctic Light: From Lapland to New York and Back

Venue: University of Lapland, KOPIO

The University of Lapland’s finalist entry for the BioDesign Challenge 2025, Arctic Light by Applied Visual Arts student Piia Köyste, has been selected to represent the university on the international stage, taking the spotlight at Parsons School of Design in New York this June. Created during the University of Lapland’s Bioart course and refined through a rigorous curatorial and peer-review process, the work fuses design thinking, material exploration and bioart to capture the spirit and rhythms of life in Finnish Lapland.

In Arctic Light, Köyste turns the shimmering, fragile scales of the ide fish, dyed with pigments from beets, onion skins, lingonberries, and blueberries, and lit by solar power, into a symbol of resilience. The piece draws on collaboration with a fisherman in Kemijärvi, where hydropower plans threaten fish stocks, water quality, and local livelihoods. Through transforming fish-processing waste into artivism, Köyste honours the deep ties between people, water, and seasonal rhythms.

Quiet yet insistent, Arctic Light reminds us that even the most fragile materials can carry the most significant stories, illuminating not only the Arctic sun but also the communities determined to keep their traditions alive. “This piece is a quiet statement,” says Köyste.

University of Lapland, Faculty of Art and Design (non-finalists): Kerttu Ahlholm, Oili Juvonen, Elina Koistinen, Tanja Korva, Juho Lintinen, Piritta Marttila, Iisa Pelkonen, Fanni Tamminen, Jenni Tapionlinna, and Siiri Vepsäläinen, Bioart course students whose contributions enriched the finalist entry. Their own video works were also presented as part of the BioDesign Challenge programme in New York.

Curated by: The University of Lapland team: Heidi Pietarinen, Amna Qureshi, and Satu Miettinen, together with Jenny Bergström (HMKW, University of Applied Sciences, Germany) and Melanie Sarantou (Kyushu University, Japan).

Venue: Gallery Kopio – Arctic Light

Press photos

Press photos:
Figure 1. Arctic Light. Photo: Piia Köyste 2025.
Figure 2. Arctic Light (detail). Photo: Piia Köyste 2025.
Figure 3. Dyed Scales (detail). Photo: Piia Köyste 2025.
Figure 4. Dyed Scales (detail). Photo: Piia Köyste 2025.
Figure 5. Dyed Scales (detail). Photo: Piia Köyste 2025.
Figure 6. SerKalNat -logo.
Figure 7. Laten Kala -logo.