From Wood to Architecture
Exhibition "From Wood to Architecture" held by Finnish Museum of Architecture presents buildings revealing the distinctive marks of good architecture. They are carefully designed works, following the idea given to them - and listening to their own voice. They rely on the past while seeking things new. Even in their enthusiasm for innovation they do not reject the mental image of continuity that is essential for the comfort of man.
"From Wood to Architecture" exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2004, and had a worldwide tour, including Istanbul. Now it is on the web with the contributions of Turkish Timber Association, cooperation of Finnish Museum of Architecture and online Museum of Architecture.
Wood is the oldest building material known to man. Alongside the spread of other materials, wood remained characteristic of some areas-owing to its availability, ease of working and insulating properties. Situated in the cold northern coniferous zone, Finland is a country of building in wood.
Two-thirds of the land area of Finland are covered by forests. Timber has traditionally defined the image of the country, in both nature and the built environment. Over the past forty years, the use of wood has considerably decreased in building as a structural and cladding material.
Now new opportunities for structural use and surface treatment are restoring wood to the prominent and visible role that it used to have in the urban and rural context.
Wood is an organic material with a complete cycle, from growing forest to raw material and finally to decomposing biomass or fuel. Alongside its ecological rationality wood has a strong psychological dimension. We are all familiar with the character and essence of wood; its vivid patterns and soft touch please the senses. Amidst the artificiality surrounding our lives today, our minds are calmed by the connection with nature that wood provides. Although wood is transformed and ages as a material, its idea remains the same. In a world of rapid change, it expresses continuity and the feeling of security that is created by permanence.
The seventeen buildings presented in this exhibition employ wood in a variety of ways. Some apply completely new solutions, while others rely on tradition. Structural uses range from glued timber and laminates to solid logwork. Functionally, the buildings have both public and private uses. They include cultural facilities, churches, schools, homes and leisure cabins. Common to all these buildings is confidence in the properties of wood and the desire to develop construction in wood as an integral part of our environment."
Roy Manttari / Museum of Finnish Architecture
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Sibelius Hall Congress and Concert Centre
Lahti, Finland, 2000.
Design: Kimnmo Lintula and Hannu Tikka
Sibelius Hall Congress and Concert Centre is located on a waterfront site formerly occupied by the woodworking industry. The principal facilities are housed in the new building and some in refurbished existing structures. The old buildings are linke...
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Annex of the University of Oulu Department of Architecture
Oulu, Finland, 2003.
Design: Claudia Auer and Niklas Sandås
The Department of Architecture is located in central Oulu, within the Empire Style grid plan area that was created after the great fire of 1822. The requirement was that the new building should merge well with the other, over hundred-year-old, buildi...
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Kärsämäki Shingle Church
Kärsämäki, Finland, 2004.
An old wooden church at Kärsämäki dating from 1765 was demolished and replaced by another in a new location in 1841, Not long ago the idea of rebuilding the original wooden church arose in the North Ostrobothnian parish, but as there was not enough documentation to work with, a decision...
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Laajasalo Church
Helsinki, Finland, 2003.
Design: Kari Järvinen and Merja Nieminen
Laajasalo Church, located in a suburb of Helsinki, presses against the site's street front and opens generously via its court and back yards towards the adjacent park. The tall, copper clad church space becomes a landmark near the street corner...
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St. Olaf Church in Tyrvää. Interior Restoration.
Vammala, Finland, 2003.
Design: Ulla Rahola
The late mediaeval stone church of St. Olaf in Tyrvää - Vammala, in the province of Pirkanmaa, was destroyed by fire in 1997. The irreplaceable wooden interior, dating back mostly to the end of the 18th century, the old northern slope of the shingle roof and the sou...
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