COVID-19 guidelines for artistic activities, gatherings and the library have been updated – general guidelines for the autumn to be announced after 4 June
We will continue our coronavirus-related restrictions until 8 August 2021.
We are approaching the end of the spring term, and many of us are already mentally preparing for the summer holiday. The coronavirus pandemic has still not subsided on a national level, and in some areas in Finland, the situation has deteriorated quite quickly. To prevent infections, extensive measures are still taken in Finland, although vaccinations are also proceeding fast. This will hopefully make it more likely that the country can open up its public operations during the summer.
However, in line with the decision of the Regional State Administrative Agency for Southern Finland, we have decided to make it possible to welcome invited guests in the audience of events that are part of our artistic activities on the Helsinki campuses and to organise the university’s internal meetings and stakeholder events indoors and outdoors. Read more about our guidelines below.
We have decided to open our own entrance to the Helsinki Music Centre and the entrance doors to the R Building as of 3 June. On the same day, the public’s entrance to the Helsinki Music Centre will also be opened. However, on the Sörnäinen Campus and in the N building of the Töölö Campus, we will keep the entrance doors locked until 8 August, because there is extra traffic in these buildings due to moving and renovation work.
The Uniarts Helsinki Library at the Helsinki Music Centre will be open for customers from outside the university community between 3 and 24 June.
The maximum number of simultaneous visitors to the MFA Degree Show Kuvan Kevät 2021 will be increased to 20 people at Exhibition Laboratory and at Exhibition Laboratory B starting from 28 May 2021. The maximum number of visitors at Project Room is still ten people.
Preparedness team to compile general guidelines for the autumn in a meeting on 4 June
General guidelines concerning the autumn’s activities and COVID exit strategy will be compiled in a preparedness team’s meeting on 4 June 2021. The guidelines will be updated based on the pandemic situation on the first week of August.
The wish is for us to be able to return to as normal study and work practices as possible at the beginning of the autumn term. It is important that we continue to be patient and conscientious when it comes to following the safety guidelines, which include the maintaining of safe distances to other people, use of face masks when moving around in the university facilities and taking care of good hand hygiene.
Summary of the changes:
- The entrance doors to the Helsinki Music Centre and R Building will be opened on 3 June 2021.
- The Sibelius Academy location of the Uniarts Helsinki Library at the Helsinki Music Centre will be open for outside customers between 3 and 24 June 2021.
- Starting from Monday, 31 May 2021, it will be possible to welcome a few invited guests from outside the university community in the Sibelius Academy’s and Theatre Academy’s concerts and performances that are organised indoors. The maximum number of people in the audience is 10 in total.
- Starting from Tuesday, 1 June 2021, there can be a maximum of 50 people (on 31 May, the maximum is only 10 people) in the Sibelius Academy’s and Theatre Academy’s concerts and performances that are organised outdoors.
- The maximum number of visitors to the MFA Degree Show Kuvan Kevät will be increased to 20 in the bigger exhibition facilities starting from 28 May. The maximum number of people at Project Room simultaneously is 10.
- Starting from Monday, 1 June 2021, the maximum number of people in meetings and in events with invited guests is 10 people indoors and 50 people outdoors.
Changes in Uniarts Helsinki’s COVID-19 guidelines:
Use of facilities
The entrance doors to the Helsinki Music Centre and R Building will be opened on 3 June 2021.
On the Sörnäinen Campus and in the N building of the Töölö Campus, we will keep the entrance doors locked until 8 August, because there is extra traffic in these buildings due to moving and renovation work.
Library
The Sibelius Academy location of the Uniarts Helsinki Library at the Helsinki Music Centre will be open for outside customers between 3 and 24 June 2021.
The Academy of Fine Arts and Theatre Academy locations of the Library closed their doors on 30 April due to renovation and moving, and the new joint campus library will open in Sörnäinen in the autumn. The Kuopio Library will be closed in June and July.
Artistic activities
Indoors
Starting from Monday, 31 May 2021, it will be possible to welcome a few invited guests from outside the university community in the audience of the Sibelius Academy’s and Theatre Academy’s concerts and performances that are organised indoors, in which case the event is considered public*. The maximum number of people in the audience is 10 in total. This number must include members of examination boards and technical staff, for example. Ticket sales for concerts and performances will not be opened.
Outdoors
On Monday, 31 May 2021, it will be possible to welcome a few invited guests from outside the university community in the Sibelius Academy’s and Theatre Academy’s concerts and performances that are organised outdoors. The maximum number of people in the audience is 10 in total. This number must include members of examination boards and technical staff, for example. Ticket sales for concerts and performances will not be opened.
Starting from Tuesday, 1 June 2021, there can be a maximum of 50 invited guests from outside the university community in the audience of the Sibelius Academy’s and Theatre Academy’s concerts and performances that are organised outdoors. Ticket sales for concerts and performances will not be opened.
Organising of concerts and performances
If the wish is to welcome audience from outside the university community, it must be agreed upon with the contact person for services in charge of the event.
An event is public* if there is even one outside person in the audience, in which case the restrictions of the local Regional State Administrative Agency will apply. When it comes to public gatherings, the instructions of the Regional Administrative Agency state that the maximum number of audience members includes all people who are in the same room or otherwise in direct contact with the audience, but not the performers or other staff members who are in a separate area from the audience. The contact information of all participants in the event must be collected to ease up the work of contact tracing officials, if the need occurs.
Internal events can still be organised in accordance with the following permission policy:
- Events where the maximum number of participants is 10 people can be organised without a separate permission. The 10-person limit includes both the student performers and the internal audience.
- A special dean’s permission is always required for the organising of events with 11–30 people.
Other work
Starting from Tuesday, 1 June 2021, the maximum number of people in Uniarts Helsinki’s meetings, team gatherings, workshops and events with invited guests is 10 indoors and 50 outdoors. Events with outside guests and participants must be organised either on campus in facilities that are not closed for outside visitors or off campus.
The recommendation to work remotely is still valid, and the staff’s participation in the aforementioned team events on site is voluntary. The contact information of all participants must be collected to ease up the work of contact tracing officials, if the need occurs.
Restaurants
All student restaurants of Uniarts Helsinki will be closed during the summer, and they will open again at the start of the autumn term.
On-call coronavirus coordination
Uniarts Helsinki’s coronavirus coordination team will not be on duty between 21 June and 8 August 2021. Emails and phone calls to the on-call coronavirus coordination team will be forwarded to the chair of the coronavirus team Jyri Pulkkinen, who can be consulted in coronavirus-related matters and in COVID-19 contact tracing, if the need occurs.
We will no longer publish weekly coronavirus case reports on Artsi, because no new cases have been reported at Uniarts Helsinki after the start of April. In the future, we will publish reports only if new cases are confirmed.