Architecture for Everyone?
In September 2020, our editorial office received a letter entitled Call for Action 2020 addressed to institutions engaged in cultural activities in Finland as a call for anti-racist action. In this article, we wish to reflect upon the letter and the questions it raises.
Return of the Industry
Integrating industry within the urban fabric of our cities could contribute to their long-term sustainability. In the Malminkartano district of Helsinki, many principles presently considered radical have been on trial for some 30 years.
The Future Lies in Africa
Africa is urbanising at a fast pace. If western architects want to be part of the development, an attitude of awareness and humbleness is needed.
What Defines a Monument?
We asked three experts to tell us what kind of architectural monument piques their interest and to name one example.
The Monumental Alliance of Finnish Government and Civilization
The Kansalaistori square, with the Parliament House on one side, paired with the Central Library on the other, has become a monumental square for the era of Finnish independence. Ilkka Törmä draws a continuum between it and Senate Square, a monument of tsarist Finland.
Under Fifty and Soon Gone
In central Tampere, there are plans to pull down the former National Workers' Savings Bank building to make way for a new, and much taller, development. This doesn't convince Anselmi Moisander.
The New Life of Gardenia
Students at Aalto University envisaged new uses for Gardenia, originally designed as a nature centre, in Helsinki’s Viikki district.
New Colossi
Bigness is becoming a prominent feature of Helsinki’s cityscape. Antti Auvinen’s photographs examine the phenomenon.
Bauhaus Legacy Born on the Dunes
Tel Aviv is home to an architectural conservation site consisting of around 4,000 buildings from the 1930s. Following a multi-stage selection process, it was designated a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2003.