dgj222 Aalto tribute, Jyväskylä, , 2016

INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITION FOR AN EXTENSION BETWEEN THE ALVAR AALTO MUSEUM AND THE MUSEUM OF CENTRAL FINLAND

Fotograf: DGJ Architects & Landscapes

Fotograf: DGJ Architects & Landscapes

Fotograf: DGJ Architects & Landscapes

Fotograf: DGJ Architects & Landscapes

 

The Finnish Touch

More than being an extension in between two buildings, the proposed design connects a new garden passage through the hilly landscape. The design connects architecture and landscape. We use Aalto’s cascade as an open water discharge and the spine of a fluid garden design. The design consequently cascades in stepped levels. They start as a simple marker at the entry at Ruusupuistonaukio (Rose-Square) with edges of natural stone and planted borders of Wild Roses (Rosa rugosa). The planting then changes with the strips of perennial grasses (Deschampsia cespitosa as basis) and a sequence of existing trees.

Further up, the sequence transforms into a series of vertical glass screens. In counterbalance to the stepped floors of the shop area, the roofs split into inclined surfaces. They make the partially planted interior light and airy, and connects well with the topography, plantings and the sky. The two buildings connect on many levels, facilitated by a double-sided elevator in the existing shaft. The elevator can accommodate the height differences smaller than cabin height. In a contemporary materials and construction techniques using structural glazing and fine steel framing, the new building presents stark contrast to the old. The structure and façades of the existing buildings remain completely untouched.

At its strategic position, the new building connects the visitor parking below and the staff parking above. The shop functions as a public passage and serves as a new central entry for both museums. At night after the museum hours, it still provides a completely independent passage with all the museum doors closed. Like a spider in the multi scalar web of buildings, the ‘Finnish Touch’ to Aalto’s building re-establishes his unique legacy of connecting landscape to architecture, aesthetically reconciling humans with nature.

project period Feb 03 2016
commissioner Aalto Museum
project team: Daniel Jauslin, Laura Font-Gallart, Daphne Keegstra, Ward Maaswinkel
project status: Competition Entry