Cross-art Collective Piste – Experts and Makers

Piste (formed in 2007) is a collective of artists and art educators who share a passion to do art in relation to their community. Cross-art Collective Piste produces high-quality and distinctive contemporary circus, dance and theatre performances and applied art projects. 

Piste creates productions, performances and projects and develops methods of art education. The Collective is very active in developing the practices of the professional art field. 

Piste has its own performance and training space called Sipola11 which is suitable for professional performances – including circus – and events. Sipola 11 can host an audience of up to 50 persons.

Piste is based in the town of Rovaniemi at the Arctic Circle in Finnish Lapland, but performs nationwide and internationally. Piste has twentyone members, all of whom are professional artists or art educators from the fields of contemporary circus, dance, theatre, puppet theatre, music, visual arts, light art, media arts and applied arts. 

The people of Piste share a view that art belongs to all people from babies to elderly. Piste also sees art as a way to be together and to become a community. Piste has worked with refugee youth, infant families, elders and people with disabilities.

The collective brings to an audience of altogether 3000 spectators on average 60 performances and 5-10 premieres yearly. Its artwork can be seen and experienced in traditional and non-traditional spaces.

Piste is an employer to one producer and five part-time artists-producers. Yearly it also is an employer to approximately 20 professional artists in several projects and events.

Piste is mainly funded by the Arts Promotion Centre of Finland and the city of Rovaniemi. In addition Piste applies for several changing fundings yearly.