The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is planning a four-month exhibit of dozens of works by Finnish modernist painter Helene Schjerfbeck.
Starting in December, it will mark the first time the museum has featured an exhibit of a Finnish artist.
The Met exhibit will feature around 60 of Schjerfbeck's works, a large portion of which are being borrowed from Helsinki's Art Museum Ateneum.
According to Ateneum's director, Anna-Maria von Bonsdorff, the effort to bring Schjerfbeck's work to New York has involved two years of work. The Met, which is careful about making announcements about planned exhibits, has now given the Finnish museum permission to discuss the Schjerfbeck show.
"This is a great thing, it's a dream come true and a unique moment in Finnish art history," von Bonsdorff gushed.
The Met exhibition will also feature Schjerfbeck works from other museums and private collections. It will feature works that the artist created over her entire life, including portraits, still lifes, landscapes and her easy to recognise self-portraits.
"Her self-portraits are striking in every exhibition, and I don't think New York will be an exception. They are so unique, appealing and powerful," von Bonsdorff said.
The Met exhibit is being curated by Dita Amory, in collaboration with von Bonsdorff.
The Ateneum director said she has thought a good deal about why the world might be interested in Schjerfbeck's works. According to her, one reason is the artist's recognisable style. Like paintings by Pablo Picasso or Edvard Munch, Schjerfbeck's works are easy to identify, von Bonsdorff explained.
"Schjerfbeck made high-quality art. She was meticulous in ensuring that every piece that left her studio was of the highest quality," von Bonsdorff said.