How Do You Convert an Office Space into Apartments?
In the Helsinki capital region alone, there are currently around 50 city blocks’ worth of empty office space. On the other hand, there seems to be a constant demand for housing. Under what preconditions are office spaces converted into apartments?
Learning from the Ugliest Building in Oulu
In the middle of a residential area in Oulu, a silo designed by Alvar Aalto is decaying as one last remnant of a pulp mill that operated on the site in the 1900s. In its unmaintained state, the building offers a lesson in the time of an eco-crisis.
Two Municipal Halls, Two Fates
Many significant buildings end up on lists for demolition if renovation seems too expensive or a suitable use cannot be found. The everyday built heritage is threatened without a timely protection status.
Construction Waste and the Fiction of Purity
Modern architecture has made a clear distinction between waste and new construction. A more comprehensive understanding of the concept of waste could help us in understanding the issues of demolition and preservation.
Everyday Life Conventions
The buildings presented in the Home theme issue made Fernando Nieto think about the design process of a house.
What Makes a Sustainable Living Environment? – Researchers Compiled a Checklist
Several new trends in housing production are worrying experts, as these trends are compromising dwellers’ health and well-being as well as the longevity of the apartments. Researchers at the Tampere University School of Architecture compiled different aspects of housing design quality into a checklist.
Architects as Experts on Thriving, Before and Now
Architects have large societal responsibility as designers of living environments. At its best, architecture is based on mankind’s ancient relationship with the environment, argues Kaj Nyman.
Housing as a Solution
In cities worldwide, people are suffering the effects of a prolonged housing crisis. Housing as a Service has been presented as a solution, but who does it really benefit?
Gustaf Estlander, Romanticist and Businessman of Residential Architecture
Just over a hundred years ago, one particular architect in Helsinki had notable financial success with his exuberantly romantic apartment buildings.