History of architectural competitions in Finland
Beauty, experimentation and cost-consciousness. Petri Kentala’s article delves into the history of architectural competitions in Finland and their significance for Finnish architecture. Kentala holds a Bachelor of Science in Technology and is also a musician and music educator, working at the intersection of architecture and music.
Beauty, Experimentation and Cost-Consciousness
150 Years of Finnish Architectural Competitions
by Petri Kentala
The institution of architectural competitions in Finland has a long history spanning just over 150 years, and it has consistently produced high-quality results. The Finnish competition institution is also internationally renowned and recognised. Its openness, systematic development and approach to archiving material have
been regarded as unique and exemplary. As the national museum responsible for the field, the Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki is in charge of archiving material relating to architectural competitions in Finland.
This article forms part of a series celebrating the 150-year history of Finnish architectural competitions, which has also seen the digitisation of the museum’s collection of black-and-white photographs from architectural competitions (approximately 15,000 images).
Exterior perspective view of the competition entry for Heureka, the Finnish Science Centre. Mikko Heikkinen and Markku Komonen, 1985.
EDITOR: Petteri Kummala
TAITTO JA ULKOASU: Johanna Havimäki
© WRITER AND THE AD MUSEUM Ltd.
ISBN 978-952-5195-65-1 (PDF)
Main photo: Temppeliaukio Church, scale model of the competition entry / Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen, 1961