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Pyhä-Luosto Visitor and Culture Centre Will Be a Low-Energy Building

Press Releas, 10 March 2011

The drawings for the new centre to be built at Pyhä-Luosto have been completed. It will be a wooden building, with only the core wall in the middle of the building being made of concrete. The centre’s ecological architecture is epitomised by the untreated grey wooden façade. The visual look of the future exhibition will be designed by the architect Taina Väisänen. The visitor and culture centre project is being led by Metsähallitus.

The new Pyhä-Luosto Visitor and Culture Centre will be constructed in the Pyhätunturi resort landscape in such a way that it will contribute to the resort’s village scenery becoming more harmonised. The surrounding nature and buildings have influenced the external form and appearance of the new centre. The building will be positioned on the site in such a way that it can be extended if required.

“The visitor and culture centre will be a building of clarity. The exhibition hall will have an architecturally dominant role inside the building, despite the wide range of facilities available,” says the architect Kimmo Kuismanen, the principal designer of the centre.

The Exhibition: Exploring the Ancient Natural History at Pyhä-Luosto and the Human Impact

The focal point of the Pyhä-Luosto Visitor and Culture Centre exhibition will be the area’s unique geological diversity. The landscape in the distance is dominated by a magnificent fell chain intersected by deep ravines. A closer look reveals mysterious rocks with ripple marks and noble amethysts with their purple glow.

Compared to the area’s geological history, the story of man is very short. The present local culture has been shaped by the influence of the Forest Sámi people, the arrival of the settlers, and the peak era of logging. The history of tourism and nature conservation has been written since the beginning of the 20th century.

These unique natural and cultural elements will be combined to create visually impressive exhibitions that offer experiences for all five senses and invite visitors to explore and enjoy. The exhibition content will be planned and produced by Metsähallitus, the Geological Survey of Finland and the University of Lapland’s Faculty of Art and Design.

Exhibition Architecture by a Creativity Professional

The Pyhä-Luosto Visitor and Culture Centre’s basic exhibition and the exhibition architecture at the Luosto information site will be designed by the architect Taina Väisänen. The work will include creating the visual look of the exhibitions and planning the ways of presenting the content.

Ms. Väisänen has a wealth of experience in exhibition architecture from working in challenging and extensive exhibition productions. Ms. Väisänen’s earlier works are on display at Museum Centre in Tampere, among other places. One of her latest works is Pukstaavi, a new museum for the Finnish book culture, to be opened in July in Sastamala, a small town near Tampere. Vapriikki’s Tampere 1918 exhibition and the National Police Museum’s permanent exhibition have been nominated for the European Museum of the Year Award 2011 in the European Museum Forum’s annual competition. Ms. Väisänen has also trained future top designers in the degree programme in design at Wetterhoff, HAMK University of Applied Sciences, Hämeenlinna.

The Pyhä-Luosto Visitor and Culture Centre will be a welcoming place,
gathering the Pyhä-Luosto resort’s central activities together in one place. Tourists will find information on the natural environment and the resort’s events, as well as on the services in the area, all under one roof.

Metsähallitus Natural Heritage Services manages the Finnish national parks and provides hiking services on the State-owned land and water areas. Metsähallitus visitor centres have a key role in presenting and protecting the Finnish nature and its diversity.

Further information:
Hely Juntunen, Park Superintendent, Metsähallitus, tel. +358 400 219 287,
e-mail: hely.juntunen(a)metsa.fi
Kimmo Kuismanen, Architect, Principal Designer, Ab CASE Consult Ltd,
tel. +358 40 724 2652, e-mail: kimmo.kuismanen(a)case.inet.fi
Taina Väisänen, Exhibition Architect, Metsähallitus, tel. + 358 205 64 7509,
e-mail: taina.vaisanen(a)metsa.fi
Riina Tervo, Project Manager, tel. +358 205 64 7748, e-mail: riina.tervo(a)metsa.fi

Read more:
www.metsa.fi > In English > Projects > Structural Fund Projects > Pyhä-Luosto Visitor and Culture Centre

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Source: http://www.metsa.fi