A new museum of architecture and design is coming to Helsinki. A natural destination for architecture and design lovers, the museum will also be a place for learning, sharing, and coming together for all curious minds. A new museum building near the historic harbour in central Helsinki will house state-of-the-art exhibitions and forward-looking programmes. With new technologies, the whole world can participate in the conversation.
Both the City of Helsinki and the State of Finland have committed to backing the new museum with significant donations. Four private foundations have joined forces, with the total capital raised almost reaching the target of 150 million euros. All parties have set conditions for their funding, with the common one being that the museum must be in a class of its own – globally.
You can’t talk about Helsinki or Finland without mentioning design and architecture. The cultural significance of the design industries is immeasurably valuable to our society. Today, architecture and design play key roles in boosting the competitiveness of our economy, as well as contribute to developing a good quality of life. Yet our two national museums designated for design and the built environment – the Museum of Finnish Architecture and the Design Museum – are both operating in historic buildings that were never meant for museum purposes, significantly limiting their ambitions in providing experiences and services for their users. This is about to change.
Our goal is simple: to build the world’s leading museum of architecture and design in Finland. Nowhere else in the world are design and architecture so embedded in the culture and identity. The new museum will merge the Museum of Finnish Architecture and the Design Museum and their substantial collections into one, with the whole representing much more than the sum of its parts.
The new museum will be situated on Helsinki’s historic seafront, in the South Harbour’s Makasiiniranta district. The location is the very definition of that sweet spot between urban life and nature that characterises Helsinki. Together with the Market Square, the Old Market Hall and the re-developed Makasiiniranta area, the museum will be part of a vivid, open and walkable city centre.
An international quality and concept competition was organised for the master plan of the Makasiiniranta area in 2021–22. The competition was won by the proposal Saaret. You can find more information about the Saaret plan here.
The new museum building was not included in the Makasiiniranta competition. The design for the museum will be selected through an open, international and anonymous competition, held in two stages. The competition begun on 15 April, 2024. Read more about the competition here.
Helsinki is committed to being carbon neutral by 2030. The guiding principles in building, planning, and programming the new museum are based on environmental, cultural and social sustainability. In this era, we are called upon to take responsibility and set an example, and we aim to over perform on that front as well.
A series of studies on the feasibility of founding a new museum for design and architecture in Helsinki have been conducted in the past few years. Based on that work, the City of Helsinki, the State of Finland and the two museums launched a project phase with a clear objective: to produce a visionary concept, an operating and funding model, a design brief and all the necessary data needed to make a final decision to build a new museum.
In April 2022 the Foundation for the Finnish Museum of Architecture and Design was established. The mission of the foundation is to establish a new museum of a high international standard. In January 2024, the foundation published the new museum's implementation plan, based on which the project will now proceed.
The design for the new museum building will be selected through an open and international competition, which begun on 15 April, 2024. Based on the competition, a more detailed timeline will be made on the development, zoning and construction of the new museum building. The timeline towards the opening of the new museum will be updated during the process.
An invitation to design the new museum of architecture and design in Helsinki, Finland.
We are seeking a design for a globally unique museum building that redefines Helsinki as a destination for architecture, design, arts, and culture.
The design for the new museum, located in Helsinki’s South Harbour, will be selected through an open, international and anonymous competition, held in two stages.
Submit questions regarding the competition brief by May 12 at 2pm (GMT +3).
Below you’ll find contact details of the project team planning the new museum of architecture and design.We would love to keep you posted through our Newsletter.
Check also the FAQ for more information.
Below you’ll find contact details of the project team planning the new museum of architecture and design.We would love to keep you posted through our Newsletter.
Check also the FAQ for more information.
