Anyone who has created an independent and original art work protected by the Copyright Act can join Kuvasto as an artist-client. Through agreements with foreign sister-organizations, Kuvasto also represents some 25,000 foreign artists' interests in Finland. In addition to providing artists and art users with advice concerning author's rights, Kuvasto produces reports and informs artists of their rights. Kuvasto collects a fee on the public presentation of art works and pays it to artists as a remuneration. It promotes Finnish art, looks after the professional and social interests of visual artists and increases the public's interest in art.
Visual artists are members of associations of professional artists, viz.
AAF and its member organisations have together founded Kuvasto, the Visual Artists' Copyright Association. In the normal Nordic manner, the great majority of all professional visual artists, some 1500 in all, are members of AAF through their membership in its member organisations. Being national organisations, AAF and its member organisations have representatives on several bodies of the cultural administration of the government. Their opinion is generally heard when dealing with policies relating to artists and art. In recent years the representation of artists and their organisations has been slightly decreased.