A terracotta-toned palette of concrete, brickwork and tiles nods to Lappeenranta’s distinctive Nineteen Eighties civic structure at Sammontalo, a mixed-use group constructing in Finland by native studio Nervin Structure.
Situated in Lappeenranta’s Sammonlahti neighbourhood, the 12,000-square-metre advanced brings collectively childcare services, a college, a public library and sports activities and youth areas beneath one roof.
Sammontalo replaces an present daycare, faculty and sports activities corridor that was initially designed within the Nineteen Eighties as a part of a wider masterplan by Finnish architect Olli Kivinen, outlined by its red-brick, postmodern fashion.
Whereas structural points led to those buildings being demolished, Helsinki-based Nervin Structure adopted the fashion and materials palette of the masterplan’s surviving civic buildings, which have turn into well-known native landmarks.
“The remaining civic landmarks within the space embody Sammontori youth centre and the well being station, each designed by architect Sulo Savolainen within the Nineteen Eighties, alongside the 1992 Sammonlahti Church by Riitta and Kari Ojala,” mentioned studio companion Antti Soini.
“These civic buildings emphasise human scale, contributing to a welcoming and approachable city surroundings,” she informed Dezeen. “Sammontalo continues the postmodern character of the encircling buildings by way of its materials decisions and its expressive architectural language.”
The 2 storeys of Sammontalo have been divided in line with its broad mixture of makes use of, with public services such because the library, sports activities services and youth centre on the bottom flooring and the extra personal studying areas above.
These zones are linked through a double-height corridor on the centre, which connects a public plaza and entrance to the north with a extra personal, cream-coloured courtyard to the south.
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“On each side of the doorway corridor, elevated mezzanines proceed the horizontal language of the outside structure, whereas the association of inside home windows mirrors the rhythm of the facade,” Soini mentioned.
“A cross-laminated timber (CLT) seating stair, paired with the stage framed by brick pillars reverse, creates a small theatre-like environment throughout the corridor, additional enhancing the dynamic character of the area,” she added.
Sammontalo was constructed primarily from a body of CLT, which is raised on a concrete plinth. On the bottom flooring, red-brick cladding creates the impression of piers, whereas the higher storey is sort of solely glazed to create a lantern-like impact.
The terracotta shade of the outside is carried by way of to the inside of the general public areas by way of stained timber and painted steelwork, whereas the personal classroom areas above are completed in paler shades of uncovered timber and cream.
Sloping tiled roofs with giant eaves high every stage of the constructing, which Soini describes as a way of “unifying” Sammontalo’s sprawling, staggered perimeter.
“Our intention was to create a cohesive entire utilizing as few, repetitive, and articulated components as potential, drawing on the essential elements of architectural language resembling plinths, pillars, beams, roofs, and home windows,” Soini defined.
“All through the constructing, brick pink is used to articulate construction and outline edges, whereas beige features as a calmer infill color. Collectively, these tones set up a transparent visible hierarchy and reinforce the legibility of the structure.”
Based mostly in Helsinki, Nervin Structure, previously AS LL TK Architects, was based by Soini alongside Leo Lindroos and Tuuli Kanerva.
Elsewhere in Finland, JKMM Architects just lately accomplished a mixed-use centre in Tampere combining housing, retail and a soccer pitch beneath a single swooping roof, and it additionally unveiled its design for the Museum of Structure and Design Helsinki.
The pictures is by Rasmus Norlander.
