Edited by: Eugenia Gotti – Architecture Department Editor – eugenia.gotti@positive-magazine.com
Tranlition assistent: Bianca Baroni
Where : Helsinki
Artworks: Competition For The Design Of The Helsinki Central Library
//COMPETITION/ARCHITECTURE
The City of Helsinki is arranging an open two-stage international competition for the design of a Central Library. The aim is to construct a vibrant and versatile meeting area, which might also result as an energy-efficient and architecturally significant building: a very functional structure.
“With the Central Library, our goal is to develop Helsinki’s urban culture and create a city centre where citizens have somewhere to meet and share their ideas”, said the deputy mayor Viljanen.
The architectural competition, named “Heart of the Metropolis”, has now reached its second stage.
Among the 544 competition entries which ran for Stage 1 of the competition, the jury has selected the following six for Stage 2. Their proposals’ entry numbers and pseudonyms are: 40 Liblab, 144 Wave/1, 149 Käännös, 160 Kasi, 357 The Diagonal Agora, 375 The Green Metropolis. At the moment, any other information about them is not known.
Half of the project is characterized by a strong focus in the entries. The retreat of the building in that zone emphasizes the importance of the public role of this architecture and invites the citizens to meet there and use it as a covered plaza.
In most of the selected proposals (except for entry 149), the skin of the building is transparent, therefore it’s possible to see and understand what happens inside the building: this has been created to encourage citizens to join the area.
The rules are the same in Stage 2 as in the first stage. The competitors chosen for Stage 2 will have the opportunity to develop their proposals further, following the instructions provided by the jury. The judges will elect a winner among the six proposals and it will be announced in June 2013.
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