Iiris Autio

Managing Director of the Tero Saarinen Company

Iiris Autio has worked as the Managing Director of the Tero Saarinen Company since 2001. She is known for her expertise in arts management, funding and cultural export, and lectures on these topics, both in Finland and abroad. In addition to her work, Autio has served as a specialist member on several creative economy and cultural export working groups for various Finnish government ministries.

From 2016 to 2018, Autio participated in the DeVos Institute of Arts Management’s Fellowship Program at the University of Maryland in Washington, D.C. In 2016, she was appointed to a government working group tasked with preparing a proposal for the Finnish Parliament on reforming the funding system for museums, theatres (including dance and circus), and orchestras.

Autio has also worked for the Ministry of Culture, Education and the Arts in the framework of the Commission's work programme for the European Union. She served on the board of the Savonlinna Opera Festival (2017–2019) and the Dance House Association (2010–2019).

Photo: Henni Hyvärinen