In the renovation, the color scheme that made the library famous was preserved. The son of the designer of the original building was responsible for the main design of the renovation.
– It is not usual that when you enter a space, you are overwhelmed by the joy brought by light and color. This time it happened. The first joy was that it is impressive. The more lasting joy was that the old had been treated very respectfully and at the same time radically, says Härö.
The color scheme of the building formerly known as the \”Yellow Library\” was preserved during the renovation. The basic colors yellow, black, white, blue and red are found in rooms and loose furniture.
After the renovation, there is more space for students, and the floors that previously served as book storage were spatially connected to the upper floors with a new open staircase and new large skylights.
The cafe-restaurant also underwent a facelift. The new, large exterior windows open onto the Seminaarinmäki park.
Architect Ari Sipinen says that the Arkkitehtuuri Finlandia prize was a pleasant surprise for him. It was a great thing for him to be able to completely renovate the library designed by his father and continue his work at the same time. Arto Sipinen kept the library of the University of Jyväskylä as his main job.
– I have great respect for my father’s work. He passed away five years ago. He made a huge great career and I myself was a lot involved in them. Of course, the basic repair is its own job, which I then did. I managed to talk with him about a few things, like whether it’s okay to make huge openings and new window walls. He was very pleased with them.
In Sipinen’s opinion, there is absolutely no point in demolishing buildings that are in the age of renovation in the 1970s. According to him, they adapt perfectly to modern needs with good planning and modifying the spaces.
Three candidates competed for the Finlandia Award for Architecture this year: the library of the University of Jyväskylä, the Serlachius art sauna in Mänttä, and the Jätkäsaari school in Helsinki.
The Finlandia award for architecture is awarded for the design or renovation design of a new building or group of buildings completed within the last three years. The recognition has been awarded since 2014.
Architecture’s Finlandia was a surprise for many, as Oodi was not awarded – \”The repair work of Käärmetalo raises self-esteem\”