The Finnish Pavilion designed by Alvar Aalto in 1956 - small in size but situated centrally in the Giardini area - houses this year an exhibition of Finnish school buildings. On display are seven schools built in the 21st century, each designed by a different architectural office.
The task of the school system is to pass knowledge to the next generation and teach it norms for living together. The Finnish system, based on compulsory education of nine years, does not depend on strict discipline but rather on voluntariness. Putting faith on pupils´ free will, the school aims to avoid risks involved in coercion and to emphasise expectations involved in freedom.
Schools are an essential part of the Finnish landscape. Recently, thanks to the PISA study, they have gained international attention. On the grounds of performance, the Finnish school system was ranked among the best in the world. The shells of the schools also play a significant role in this.
Built within the frame of an old machine workshop, the Strömberg School in Helsinki has a cheerful look supportive of learning. The big Viikki Teachers´ Training School at the centre of a new housing area in Helsinki expresses the diversity of its contents in the repeated division of its facades. The Hiidenkivi school, again in Helsinki and also freshly youthful in its architecture, is loaded with expectations related to growing up. The Sakarinmäki School in Helsinki is gentle and inspiring, the wooden ensemble broken into small-scale parts of different colours. The school in Joensuu represents a self-confident, elegant appearance, replete with high quality. In Sipoo, the glass-walled Enter school and vocational college speaks proudly and monumentally. It is sincere in its rectilinear architecture. The Kirkkojärvi School in Espoo, completed this summer, is both strong and sensitive. Its architecture shows how imposing and beautiful a new school can be.
Roy Mänttäri, Curator
Projects and participants:
Strömberg School, Helsinki, Finland, 2001. Architects: Kari Järvinen, Merja Nieminen
Viikki School, Helsinki, Finland, 2004. Architects: Markku Erholtz, Hannu Huttunen , Jussi Karjalainen
Hiidenkivi School, Helsinki, Finland, 2005. Architect: Seppo Häkli
Sakarinmäki School, Sipoo, Finland, 2006. Architect: Sari Nieminen
Joensuu Lyceum, Joensuu, Finland, 2007. Architects: Ilmari Lahdelma, Heikki Viiri
Enter School, Sipoo, Finland, 2007. Architects: Kimmo Lintula, Mikko Summanen, Niko Sirola
Kirkkojärvi Schoo, Espoo, Finland, 2010. Architects: Väinö Nikkilä, Riina Palva, Jussi Palva, Ilkka Salminen
Commissioner:
Ms. Juulia Kauste, Director of the Museum of Finnish Architecture (1.6. 2010-)
Assistant Commissioner:
Ms. Kristiina Nivari, Acting Director (-31.5. 2010)/Program Manager, Museum of Finnish Architecture
Curator:
Mr.Roy Mänttäri, Head of the Exhibition Office, Architect, Museum of Finnish Architecture
Assistant Curator:
Mr. Hannu Hellman, Exhibition Manager, Museum of Finnish Architecture
Exhibition Design:
Roy Mänttäri
Techinical Production:
Hannu Hellman
Graphic Design:
Roy Mänttäri
