Press Releases

Media Relations Contact:  Aina Cohen

For Immediate Release
May 15, 2006

Consulate General of Finland to visit the University of Pittsburgh's Nationality Rooms.

The Consulate General of Finland in New York, Osmo Lipponen, will open an award ceremony and press event to be held on Friday, June 2nd, at 2 pm in the Commons Room of the Cathedral of Learning. During this event a prize for the best design of the Finnish Nationality Classroom will be awarded to architecture student Mika Grönhahl from Oulu University, Finland.  Mika will then present his winning design, titled The Big Dipper which is based on an early Finnish smoke cottage and combines tradition with modern technology, original materials, and a coherent theme. Following the ceremony and presentation, the group will tour the 26 Nationality Rooms in the Cathedral of Learning and examine the future site of the Finnish Nationality Room.

The Finnish Room Committee of the University of Pittsburgh and Finlandia Foundation Pittsburgh Chapter sponsored the design competition with the aim of gathering creative ideas to enhance the final design of the Finnish Nationality Room and enriching the architectural education of the students involved. The competitors were instructed to design a working classroom which best represents Finnish culture and the Finnish built environment as they existed prior to 1787, (the year the University of Pittsburgh was founded). A number of Finnish architects and interior designers submitted entries. The jury found Mika Grondahl’s winning design “Big Dipper” to be realizable and to have an elegant overall plan. The design integrates an early Finnish smoke cottage with the newest audiovisual technology in an interesting manner. The contrast between modern and historic also represents Finland's rapid development to be one of the most advanced countries in the field of technology. The Finnish groups are now working to raise the funds necessary (estimated at $300,000) to construct the Finnish Nationality Classroom. For more information about the Finnish Room Project, visit www.pittsburghfinns.net or contact Finnish Room Committee chairperson Seija Cohen (seijac@aol.com).

Also during their stay in Pittsburgh, the Consulate General may attend a concert at the Garfield Artworks featuring the music group Kaiku, who were named the Finlandia Foundation performers of the year 2006.  Kaiku (Finnish for "echo") is a New York based group of Finnish and American musicians. Their music is a fascinating mix of spirited Finnish singing and world music instrumentation. The striking voices of the female vocalists have been described as "Kate Bush multiplied by three". The concert will start at 8:00 pm with local musician Carl Rahkonen playing Finnish tunes with violin and the kantele (a traditional Finnish string instrument).

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For Immediate Release 
April 20, 2006

Architecture student Mika Gröndahl wins design competition for his submission titled The Big Dipper.

A competition for the best potential design of the Finnish Nationality Classroom was sponsored by the Finnish Nationality Room Committee of the University of Pittsburgh.   First place was awarded to Mika Gröndahl, architecture student from Oulu University, for his submission titled The Big Dipper.  An overview of his design which combines traditional decor and state of the art audio-visual technology is displayed below.  The second prize winners are a design team comprised of Eero Lunden, Heikki Muntola, Olli Saarikoski and Eero Tapio from Oulu University for their Carelian inspired submission titled Piilu. The third prize winners are Jesperi Vara and Jussi Heinonen from Tampere University of Technology, for their innovative submission titled KUURAClick here to view a .pdf file containing a description of the winning designs in both English and in Finnish.

The winning design titled The Big Dipper, by Mika Gröndahl, is based on an early Finnish smoke cottage and combines tradition with modern technology, original materials, and a coherent theme. The colors are dark and light woods. The dialog between the traditional elements and their new interpretation is fresh and modern. Reference is made to Finnish literature, in particular the story of The Seven Brothers by Aleksis Kivi. The brothers studied the alphabet in a similar room.  Click here to download a .pdf file (6.8 MB) by Mika Gröndahl describing his winning design. 

The design competition ended in March 2006 and was open to all Finnish students of architecture and interior design.  Entries had to incorporate the technological requirements of the contemporary university teaching classroom into an architectural interior that is expressive of Finland’s past, prior to 1787, the year of the University of Pittsburgh’s founding.  Portions of the winning designs will be incorporated into the final plans for the Finnish Nationality Classroom.  Click here to download a pdf file explaining the full contest rules.   We were pleased to receive many wonderful submissions and thank all who entered the competition.

About the Winning Designer:

Mika Gröndahl is a Finnish expatriate living in New York with his wife and three children. He is currently on a leave of absence from his employment as a Graphics Editor at The New York Times, while finishing his Masters Degree in Architecture from the University of Oulu, Finland. His thesis project is a 35-story Finland Center located in the heart of Times Square. After graduation Mika is looking forward to complete more design projects through the design company, Lumi 4, Inc., which he runs with his wife.

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The Finnish Nationality Classroom Proposal

Finnish Room Committee has reached an agreement with the University of Pittsburgh to start fund raising for the construction of a Finnish Nationality Classroom to be added to the existing 26 Nationality Rooms in the Cathedral of Learning (right) at the University of Pittsburgh. The design of this new classroom will reflect the culture and customs of Finland.  The classroom will serve as a memorial where the relatives of early Finnish immigrants will learn about their heritage and remember the contributions of their ancestors and as a place where students and visitors will learn about Finland and Finnish traditions.  It will also provide a focal point for local Finnish organizations and activities.

The Nationality Classrooms at the University of Pittsburgh are a centerpiece of cultural activities in Pittsburgh.  A common question of the many visitors — tens of thousands every year — who tour these rooms is: WHERE IS THE FINNISH ROOM? We of the Finnish Room Committee have made it our task to correct this unsatisfying situation.

We need your support: It is an ambitious goal for us to raise the $300,000 necessary to cover all the expenses of constructing this heritage classroom.  To reach this goal, we need the support of other Finns and Finnish Americans throughout the United States.  

1. Please consider sending a contribution to support the construction of the Finnish Nationality Classroom.  Contributions may be made online, by credit card or by check.  Click here to find out more on how to contribute.   

2. You can also help by sharing this information with your friends, family, and local cultural organizations.  To help with the fundraising effort, a flyer describing the Finnish Nationality Classroom Project is available for download  (Finnish_Room_Flyer.pdf) and a complimentary 30-minute video about the Nationality Classroom program, entitled “Homelands Remembered”, is available for presentations upon request.  For more information please contact Seija Cohen ((seijac@aol.com).  Adding a link to http://www.pittsburghfinns.net on your organizations website is another way to help spread the word.

Learn More:

  1. The Finnish Room Committee
  2. Our Goal
  3. The Purpose of the Finnish Nationality Classroom
  4. How to Contribute
  5. Dedication of Gift Ceremony
  6. Finnish People in Pennsylvania
  7. Finland Today


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