Museum of Finnish Architecture (Helsinki, Finland)
Museum of Finnish Architecture (Helsinki, Finland)
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AREA: Helsinki
ADDRESS: Museum of Finnish Architecture, Suomen arkkitehtuurimuseo, Kasarmikatu 24, 00130 Helsinki, Finland
COUNTRY: Finland
MUSEUM OF FINNISH ARCHITECTURE
- Museum
HOW TO GET THERE?
You can get there easily from the Helsinki Central Railway Station. Walk about 100 meter to the west. The tram (light trail) station is behind Sokos Department store. Take tram (light trail) number 10.
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This is unofficial video!
YouTube Channel: TravelinFinland
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MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Helsinki City Theatre Restoration
MFA Friday Clip series presents videos of the latest biennial review projects. This week: the restoration of Helsinki City Theatre by LPR Architects.
Helsinki City Theatre is the crowning achievement of Timo Penttilä’s career as an architect. The restoration work finished in 2017 by Turku-based LPR Architects is among the selections of the jury for the Finnish Architecture Review 2018. LPR Architects have taken special care to preserve the character of Penttilä’s original 1960s design, complete with its distinctive sequence of spaces and panoramic views of the surrounding park.
Outwardly no changes are visible: all new technology is concealed, and the façades and public areas have been restored to their former appearance. All the detailing is exactly as it originally was: the carpeting and other textiles were renewed in their original colour scheme and the latticework was reconstructed with loving attention to detail.
The restoration for the Helsinki City Theatre by LPR Architects is one of the 16 jury selections for the Finnish Architecture Review 2018.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural reviews present a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Transport
Terminal buildings are liberating points of transition. A trip down the escalator shaft at the Helsinki Airport Railway Station or an ascent to the platform facing panoramic windows while entering a ferry at the new Helsinki West Terminal, the experience of movement and anticipation is enclosed in the building and the way it leads one towards a journey.
Two large-scale projects of transportation architecture are presented in the Finnish Architecture Review 2018, both by PES-Architects, a Helsinki and Shanghai based office. The Helsinki Airport Railway Station is part of the long-awaited Ring Rail Line, which has offered a convenient train route between the airport and Helsinki city centre since summer 2015. West Terminal 2 is a completely new ferry terminal at the tip of the harbor in Jätkäsaari, for both pedestrian passengers and vehicles, and just a few minutes away from the city centre, the silhouette of Helsinki being the first thing to see as they arrive.
About the Review:
Finland’s biennial architectural review presents a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - The National Library of Finland Restoration
MFA Friday Clip series presents videos of the latest biennial review projects. This week theme: The National Library of Finland restoration by LPR Architects.
The National Library restoration project was based on a detailed survey of the building’s history. Finland’s top experts were called in to carry out the conservation, and the entire restoration process was documented thoroughly. Although the architects strove to be subtle and conserve as much as they could, there were inevitable technical challenges.
The building is widely regarded as Finland’s most beautiful old library. However, it has suffered from damp problems throughout its history and the team had no choice but to repair the resultant structural damage. Added to this were the new functional and technical demands listed by the client, such as self-service facilities, wheelchair access and digital connectivity. New facilities were installed in the basement by cutting into the underlying bedrock. The impressive new underground annex contains an elegant cloakroom and locker room.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural review presents a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
This year’s jury was chaired by the Portuguese architect Gonçalo Byrne, a recent member of the jury that selected the winner of the Mies van der Rohe Award. The two other members of the Biennial Review jury are Maire Mattinen, architect and Anni Vartola, architect and critic.
The 16 shortlisted projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Think Corner
The newly opened multipurpose premises of the University of Helsinki fulfil the promise of the invited architectural competition organized in 2014, which sought a creative solution for renovating and repurposing the university’s administrative building on the city centre campus. Repurposed and re-titled “Think Corner” by JKMM Architects, the building is now buzzing with students, teachers, speakers, entrepreneurs, service providers and visitors who use it for public lectures, meetings, debates and co-working in contemplation of big issues. The former administrative building designed by Toivo Korhonen has been transformed into an exciting catalyst factory of thought that enchants and enraptures everyone.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural reviews present a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design.The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Saunas
The smoke sauna located in Asikkala, southern Finland, is designed by TUOMO SIITONEN ARCHITECTS. It has all the fundamental components of the traditional sauna experience:
The archetypal history of the smoke sauna, its lengthy heating time and the connoisseurship required to burn the wood and to remove the smoke and soot before bathing give the smoke sauna very special status in Finnish sauna culture. With smoke saunas, the keywords are slow, dark and quiet.
Again, The public sauna in Lonna Island, by OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture, is an attempt to reawaken the old Finnish tradition of bathing in a shared space. In recent years, several new urban public saunas have risen in Helsinki and elsewhere in Finland after decades of favouring private saunas. An urban public sauna offers a social experience consisting of a very personal bathing ritual along with a strong link with the city, while still remaining withdrawn from the actual buzz of the city.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural review presents a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
This year’s jury was chaired by the Portuguese architect Gonçalo Byrne, a recent member of the jury that selected the winner of the Mies van der Rohe Award. The two other members of the Biennial Review jury are Maire Mattinen, architect and Anni Vartola, architect and critic.
The 16 shortlisted projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Serlachius Museum, Gösta's Pavillion
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
One of the presented buildings in 2016 is Gösta's Pavilion – the annex building for the Serlachius Museum of Fine Arts in Mänttä. It was completed in 2014, fitting well both with the old museum manor and the surrounding nature.
The plan was first submitted in an open international architectural competition by the Spain-based MX_SI Architectural Studio and then realized together with Huttunen-Lipasti-Pakkanen Arhitects. In the video, architect Uula Kohonen tells about the international collaboration and the unconventional thinking behind the project.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Dipoli Restoration
Dipoli has always had admirers as a famous attraction on the Otaniemi campus, but appreciation of its special value as a heritage site came decidedly late. The building faced criticism back in its day, but gradually the work of Raili and Reima Pietilä has recently come under reappraisal.
Originally owned by the Student Union of the Helsinki University of Technology, this unique student hub has established its identity as the new main building of Aalto University –adaptability after all having been one of the key aims of the original architectural design. The work done by ALA Architects can rightly be regarded as a major milestone in architectural restoration.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural reviews present a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Churches
MFA Friday Clip series presents videos of the latest biennial review projects. This week: Two prominent restoration projects from Finland and Estonia, Töölö Church in Helsinki and St Paul's Church in Tartu. Plus one contemporary project, the Suvela Chapel. The offices featured here are Käpy and Simo Paavilainen Architects, Kari Järvinen and Merja Nieminen Architects SAFA and OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture, respectively.
The restoration of the Eliel Saarinen designed St Paul’s Church in Tartu was like assembling a jigsaw puzzle with many damaged and missing pieces. The architects utilized the entire arsenal of restoration methods combining conservation with partial reconstruction. Likewise, the Töölö Church restoration was a laborious project that elegantly pays homage to the aesthetic aspirations and distinctive character of Hilding Ekelund's Nordic neoclassical architecture from the 1920s. Last but not least, a Mies van der Rohe Prize nominated chapel built for the Espoo Parish is a design that fits with a striking preciseness to its surroundings and compliments the communal feeling of the Suvela neighbourhood as a definitive example of contemporary Finnish church architecture.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural reviews present a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Renovation of the Presidential Palace
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
The Presidential Palace hosts a rich history: it has performed various roles since its original completion in 1820. In 1921 it became the residence of the President of the Republic of Finland, and it has been a heritage site since 1980. Architect Tiitta Itkonen from LPR Architects tells about the renovation of the palace (2015) and finding the compromise between technical and practical demands.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Aalto University Undergraduate Centre
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
The Aalto University Undergraduate Centre, traditionally known as the main building in Otaniemi, is a beloved building by Alvar Aalto. As such, its renovation has asked for balancing between different aspirations. Despite this challenge, Architects NRT ( have managed the task in an exemplary manner. In the video, Architects Teemu Tuomi and Tuomo Remes as well as Päivi Hietanen, the Design Manager of Aalto University, discuss the project.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Centre for Systems Biology Dresden
MFA Friday Clip series presents videos of the latest biennial review projects. This week: Centre for Systems Biology Dresden by Heikkinen-Komonen Architects.
This new building for the Max Planck Institute in Dresden represents the latest generation of research labs, evolving in rhythm with the development of new technologies. Spaces for interaction are in a crucial role, and design solutions that encourage exchange of information between the scientists are part of the strategy. Most of the workspaces for the scientists and researchers working in the building have been distributed on the four sides along the outer perimeter of the cube. These spaces benefit from abundant natural light, while looking from the outside, one can hardly imagine the existence of a serene, sculpted central core placed between them for casual meetings. This kind of stimulating duality creates an interesting “think tank” for the scientists in the building. When either working in a workspace or in a meeting room, one can see out and have daylight come in from the outside. When moving inside the building or just sitting down or talking with a fellow researcher, one finds oneself in a more introverted space.
Centre for Systems Biology Dresden by Heikkinen-Komonen Architects is one of the 16 jury selections for the Finnish Architecture Review 2018.
About the review:
Finland’s biennial architectural reviews present a selection of recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The projects offer an example of recent accomplishments in high-level contemporary planning, renovation, and sustainable, responsible design. The review is organized by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Restoration of Viipuri Library
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
Viipuri Library is Alvar Aalto's masterpiece from the 1930s, located in Russian Federation and holding great value as a heritage monument. However, the building suffered damage during World War II and the following decades, but With the help of Aalto's original plan, many of the original structural solutions, materials and details could be restored to their former glory. In the video, architect Tapani Mustonen tells about the long project, having started already in 1991 and subsisting with little funding in its early years.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - Arabiankatu 8 Housing Block
MFA Friday Clip series presents videos of the latest biennial review projects. This week: Arabiankatu 8 Housing Block by B & M Architects.
Arabiankatu 8 is an apartment building in Helsinki’s Arabianranta district, designed by B & M Architects and completed in 2016. With its thirteen stories and 65 apartments, common facilities, and commercial space, the building presents a solid case for the virtues of light and a straightforward argument fulfilling the basic requirements of urban living.
The floor plans of the apartments are sensible and pragmatic in design, but show an effort to offer long views out of the apartment door and to size the rooms with flexible furnishing in mind. The key features of the Arabianranta residential district are its unprejudiced approach to mixing functions, testing new housing concepts, harnessing local resources, referencing the district’s industrial history, and using public art as an integral element of its urban architecture. The Arabiankatu 8 building has an airy, light-filled staircase featuring an art piece by Aimo Katajamäki. The building has no private outdoor spaces, but the shared roof terraces and the common courtyard system offer an intriguing, progressive concept for further development.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Puukuokka Housing Block
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years, scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture. Now you can send your suggestions for the year 2018! Act before the end of May 2017:
Puukuokka Housing Block, located in Jyväskylä, is an ambititious and innovative sample of Finnish wooden architecture. It was completed in 2014/2015 and designed by OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture ( In the video, the residents of Puukuokka praise the cosy atmosphere, and architect Anssi Lassila from OOPEAA talks about the benefits of wood as material.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Tipotie Health Centre
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
When designing Tipotie Health Centre in Tampere, the first challenge SIGGE Architects encountered was the difficult location: the health centre is located on a steep slope. In the clip, architects Pekka Mäki and Rauno Lehtinen discuss the challenges as well as inspiration brought on by the location. Due to the slope, visitors enter from the top floor and thus the building flips the normal order of things.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Kouk Khleang Youth Center
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
Kouk Khleang (2014) is a Cambodian youth center built sustainably from bamboo and designed by Komitu Architects (working group Aaltonen Hovila Kassi Koivisto Suomi Virkkala). It is a celebration of local tradition, ecological sustainability and teamwork, having involved both the future users of the building and Cambodian students of architecture. In the video, the architects Elina Koivisto, Tuuli Kassi, Sisko Hovila, Noora Aaltonen, Inari Virkkala and Maiju Suomi descibe the ecological, social as well as aesthetic values.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture. Review 2018 - HEKA Koirasaarentie 36 Affordable Housing
MFA Friday Clip series presents videos of the latest biennial review projects. This week theme: HEKA Koirasaarentie 36 Affordable Housing by Anttinen Oiva Architects.
Comprised of mid-rise apartment buildings dating from the 1960s and early 70s, Laajasalo in eastern Helsinki is now being developed into a dense urban district to be connected to the city centre with a new bridge and tram route. HEKA Koirasaarentie 36 is one of the new apartment buildings all along the forested eastern shoreline. HEKA stands for Helsingin kaupungin asunnot, or the Helsinki City real estate company. Their policy is to procure affordable accommodation for low-income tenants who live and work in Helsinki.
Being an extremely cost-conscious, regulated design, the HEKA Koirasaarentie project shows that perceptive architects can achieve fine results despite tight financial constraints. The Jury of the Finnish Architecture Review 2018 stated:
“The long block harmonizes both with the streetfront view and the beautifully landscaped courtyard with its natural rock and pine trees. There is nothing forced about the composition because the site plan is organically open. It respects the 1960s context but throws away the rigid and suppressive formal principles of modernist planning.”
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Kipparintalo Co-Housing
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
Kipparintalo (Skipper's House; 2015), located in new Kalasatama in Helsinki, is a communal block of flats for young residents with learning disabilities. The video gives a voice to one of the residents, praising the great community in the area. We also hear the architects Juha Leiviskä ja Kati Murtola tell how the solutions stemmed from the challenges and the difficult shape of the plot proved suitable for the special needs of this particular project.
MFA Friday Clip: Finnish Architecture 2016 – Kuopio City Theatre
The Biennial Reviews of Finnish Architecture are arranged every two years (by MFA, SAFA and Alvar Aalto Foundation), scouting and exhibiting the very best of Finnish contemporary architecture.
Kuopio City Theatre was originally designed by Helmer Stenros and Risto-Veikko Luukkonen in 1960s. In the renovation, ALA Architects restored parts of the old building to their original condition but also a new extension was added. The extension unfolds behind the old building, creating a fascinating contrast to the original design. Inside, the old and new come together seamlessly.
In the video, architects Antti Nousjoki, Juho Grönholm and Samuli Woolston tell about the restoration, extension and the new hall added to the building. We also hear the memories of actor Auli Poutiainen.