Urban Furniture

The Furniture Design Institute in Helsinki embraces a diverse approach to display across various scales. Functioning as a distinctive piece of urban furniture, the institute engages in a dynamic dialogue with architecturally complex neighbors such as Alvar Aalto's Finlandia Hall, Steven Holl's Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Parliament House. Serving as both a showcase for historic and emerging Scandinavian furniture design, the building employs various display and lighting strategies internally, transforming into a bridge between tradition and creativity.

The institute functions as a display case, utilizing horizontal, vertical, and oblique circulation routes to shape its form and define its relationship with the surrounding landscape, transportation infrastructure, and cultural amenities. Acting as a creative hub, it incorporates these circulation routes into its design, seamlessly connecting with the networks of axes, views, and formal shifts present in the site. By plugging into these dynamic networks, the institute becomes a vibrant expression of its context, weaving together history, contemporary design, and the unique features of the surrounding environment.