The neo-Renaissance building in the Helsinki district of Ullanlinna has been has previously been used, among other things, as offices, but now the building has been restored to its original use as an apartment building.
The reform of housing construction often requires completed pioneering buildings. We asked Jyrki Tarpio, a postdoctoral researcher in housing design, to evaluate the apartment buildings presented in the Housing Reform issue (2/2025) that originate from Housing Reform architectural competitions and the City of Helsinki’s Re-Thinking Urban Housing programme.
The history of spolia dates back to the collapse of Ancient Rome and following propaganda of the Christian church. Nowadays, it could serve as a tool for repurposing building components, particularly when it comes to our endangered, post-1950s building stock.