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Institutional theory has undergone major development in recent decades, while resource dependence theory has remained essentially unchanged since its inception in 1978. This study examines the associations of these two theories and organisational performance in the context of cultural centres in Finland. Few studies have attempted to empirically determine the effects of resource scarcity on institutional pressures. In addition to the novelty of combining these two theories, this thesis addresses this gap in the literature by empirically examining how and why resource dependence influences organisations' strategic responses. Using a mixed methods approach, this research involved in-depth semi-structured interviews and surveys in a later stage. A total of 20 interviews was conducted at four private cultural centres in Finland, while quantitative data (i.e. surveys) were gathered from 106 cultural centres. Thematic analysis was applied to the qualitative data to investigate the factors that influence the practices of private cultural centres. Next, the quantitative data were reviewed to confirm or reject the assumptions from the qualitative data. A broad range of participants was selected to generate generalisable, reliable, valid and meaningful data and conclusions. The results support the conclusion that private cultural centres do not passively adhere to institutional constraints. Rather, they selectively choose strategic responses that balance conflicting institutional pressures and their own interests and goals. Additionally, the more dependent a cultural centre is on a single revenue source—in this study, the municipality—the greater of conformity it displays. Likewise, the more dependent a cultural centre is on diverse revenue sources, the greater diversity it displays. Through this theoretical discussion and empirical assessment, this research contributes to an expanded, more accurate understanding of how organisations can engage in sustainability practices that improve performance. This study also fills the research gap on Finnish cultural centres and identifies factors that affect the adoption of organisational strategical responses. Finally, this study yield recommendations for future research and implications for the practice of cultural centres, suggesting how resource dependence alters organisational strategic responses.

The subject of my doctoral studies is the exploration and development of playing technique on the chromatic kantele. In pursuit of this goal, I have worked to expand the instrument’s repertoire by arranging works for other instruments, as well as commissioning new works specifically for the chromatic kantele. The research component is broadly grounded in my own performance experience and physical awareness so-called practice-led research, with the central aim of accurately verbalizing the conclusions drawn from this process. The series of five concerts has included new works for chromatic kantele by six different composers. These collaborations have yielded new performance techniques in the realization the composers’ concepts. As a performer and teacher, I always emphasize as an important starting point working toward practical solutions, and responding to the composer’s expressive and technical aims in the closest possible manner. In my doctoral concert series, I have also performed eight new arrangements for chromatic kantele. My own technique has expanded greatly through the adaptation through the analysis and performance of the highly chromatic French Impressionist repertoire. Close collaboration with instrument makers has also been central to this development. My degree studies have led to the construction of a newly commissioned chromatic kantele design, the Koistinen 61-string chromatic kantele (2010). This new instrument, with its expanded range, has opened the door to repertoire previously unattainable to the traditional chromatic kantele. As this instrument is currently the only example of ts kind, I have asked composers to also provide solutions for smaller kantele models where possible, in order to increase the reach of their new works. My written thesis focuses primarily on the technical capabilities of the chromatic kantele. I have divided the kantele’s playing techniques into three separate categories – beginner, intermediate and advanced –with the aim of allowing composers to develop an awareness of the difficulty level of their works. One of my secondary goals during my degree studies has been to encourage the composition of works aimed at improving the technique of players at the student level. It is my hope that this handbook will provide composers with the knowledge of the instrument’s wide range of possibilities, thus giving them the means to follow their creative imagination to its fullest extent in writing for the chromatic kantele.

My thesis project consists of a Master’s Thesis as well as eleven photographs that were presented at Kuvan kevät in May 2018. The photographs are the result of the work I have done at the Academy of Fine Arts during my master’s studies and the purpose of the text is to give an account of how my work evolved into what became my part of the Kuvan kevät exhibition. In a broad sense my interest as an artist circles around the human condition. Especially what it is like to live as a vulnerable being and how our mortality is reflected in our inner landscape, our behaviour and how we organize ourselves in groups and societies. In my thesis it has been my aim to look at how this interest has come about and how it has shaped my work. I also speculate about the direction that it is taking me in. During the last six years I have worked with subjects such as a fallout shelter, surgery, prosthetics and hospitals and the purpose of my thesis has partly been to reflect on how these themes relate to one another in my practice. My intention has been to present the questions and ideas that interest me as an artist in order for me to develop a more defined practice.

This Master’s Thesis consists of two parts: the exhibition Dark Lines. Works by Ian Bourgeot (5.11.-12.12.2015) and the written component under the same name. In the written part, which can rather be called an essayistic documentation, I go through the events and initial considerations leading to making the exhibition, its goals and the outcome. Dark Lines was the first occurrence when Ian Bourgeot’s drawings were presented to the public, although he has been producing artworks during his entire adult life. Arkadia International Bookshop - a second-hand bookstore owned and run by Ian Bourgeot and his wife Liisa Bourgeot - was chosen quite naturally as the exhibition venue. Although Bourgeot’s works exist in abundance, only a small number of them was eventually included in the exhibition, the main part of which was made up of his latest drawings (2014- 2015). However, several of the selected works dated back to 2005. The written part is based mainly on my personal experience of discovering Ian Bourgeot’s art. I elaborate on how I became interested in his drawings, introduce Bourgeot as an artist, present some facts from his biography, and explain the underlying principle for the selection of the artworks. I analyse the process of working with the space, which meant, in practice, creating an exhibition inside the existing space of the bookshop. My attention is especially drawn to the meanings attributed to different rooms in Arkadia and the relation that emerged between them and the artworks. I ponder over the idea of the white cube, compare Arkadia with it and think about the meaning of the whole exhibition from this perspective. Finally, I write about the exhibition as a crucial moment for Bourgeot’s further development as an artist, bringing some examples. The process of working on Dark Lines and its written documentation also broadened my understanding of art, and even culture in general. It helped me to better realise the features of curatorial practice as well as my own ways of doing and developing it further in future.