I have just returned from EuroCHRIE in Helsinki, where I was delivering a paper on the role of visitor centres in helping people capture the ‘spirit of place’. Helsinki is a wonderful city whose architecture illustrates clearly the highs and lows on Finnish history. For 100 years Finland was part of the Russian Empire and there is evidence of this in the statue of Tsar Nicholas in the cathedral square, the Tsarist eagle sculpture overlooking the harbour, and the nearby Orthodox cathedral of Uspensky.
The move towards independence (which came in 1917) stimulated a flowering of creativity in all the arts, illustrated partly by the wealth of ‘Jugendstil’ houses in the city centre and by the mighty edifice of the National Museum, built to celebrate every aspect of Finnish culture. And the vision of later 20th century Finnish architects can be seen in the Finlandia Concert Hall and the interior of the Academic Bookstore on Esplanaadi.
We sometimes forget, as we walk round cities, that the buildings around us aren’t just functional expressions of a client’s brief, but an attempt by the architect to share this vision and to enhance the world we live in. Next time you walk down Park Row to Leeds Station, look up and around, and marvel!
