The temporary facilities of Finlandia Hall, “Little Finlandia” has been developed with Wood Program and Building Design Studio

The renovation of Finlandia Hall is set to start in early 2022. The renovation project will last for approximately 2.5 years. Finlandia Hall will continue to be used as a conference and event centre throughout the renewal project and some of the activities will be organised in the temporary facilities. The design of the temporary facilities has been developed in cooperation with students and teachers at Aalto University Department of Architecture's Wood Program and Building Design Studio.

The development work was a two-phase studio assignment. The purpose of the temporary facilities is to implement the wooden construction and circular economy goals of the City of Helsinki so that, going forward, sections of the building can be moved and altered for further use as temporary facilities by schools and daycare centres, for example. The estimated service life of the building is over 20 years.

Little Finlandia will bring a comfortable living room open to all in the Töölönlahti Bay area. The space will contain a café and restaurant, a Design & Deli Shop and a gallery. A terrace outside the building will invite urban parties and festivals for the developing Töölönlahti Bay area.

Little Finlandia is built on the Karamzininranta street plaza, which is located between Finlandia Hall and Töölönlahti Park. The pavilion will be integrated into the landscape, representing the essence of Finnish wood architecture.

The construction of Little Finlandia will start in early summer 2021, and the project will be finished towards the end of the year. The building will be opened to the public in early 2022.

Team: Jaakko Torvinen, Elli Hirvonen, Havu Järvelä, Stine Pedersen​/ Aalto University