We are thrilled to invite you to the Oslo Architecture Triennale After belonging main exhibition In Residence at the National Museum - Architecture. Kaleidoscope partner Silje Klepsvik is part of the project OPENtransformation together with architect Elisabeth Søiland and sociologist Åsne Hagen. You will meet us at the opening event cheering away!
Bergen on the front page
The Norwegian architectural news publication Arkitektnytt visited Bergen for their 03/2016 issue, and we from Kaleidoscope were happy to be interviewed for the magazine. Bergen - the most beautiful city in Norway (or the world, if you ask anyone coming from Bergen) - has for a long time had very few smaller architectural practices establishing there, and the general opinion labels Bergen as a conservative city when it comes to architecture. Is the historical past of Bergen too heavy a burden to make rebel with or even live and build alongside? Arkitektnytt searched answers to why this is so, and our answer is that Bergen is changing. There is more openness for collaboration of small offices, there are new discussion arenas for debating and networking and there is a rising culture for creative businesses. We trust that the city sees a positive growth in brave new and uncompromised architecture in the years to come, and of course, we will be one of those giving birth to it. You can download the article by clicking here - it will make most sense if you can read Norwegian!
A year with Uusi Kaupunki collective
It's time for a short retrospective of our year with Uusi Kaupunki collective and a sneak peak to future too! During 2015, our participatory urban design collective has grown with six new and skilled architecture offices, Kaleidoscope being one of them, and started a collaboration with Collaplan. Uusi Kaupunki has developed new models and tools for participatory design together with some of the clients, and held workshops in Vallisaari, Jyväskylä, Hyvinkää, Malmi, Jakomäki, Kangasala and last but not least, the first workshop abroad in Tallinn, Estonia. Currently, Uusi Kaupunki consists of 12 young award-winning Finnish offices, and several of the offices are continuing work with commissions from the workshops. In 2016 we in Kaleidoscope and Uusi Kaupunki look forward to taking our skills even further to serve new and old clients and partners with expertise on participatory urbanism. If you are fluent in Finnish, you can take a look at the Uusi Kaupunki newsletter for more detailed news!
OPENtransformation wins at Oslo Architecture Triennale 2016
We are thrilled to announce that Kaleidoscope partner Silje Klepsvik, together with architect Elisabet Søiland and sociologist Åsne Hagen, is one of the winners of Oslo Architecture Triennale 2016 Intervention Strategies with their project OPENtransformation - From "others" to "neighbours". From 127 entries, 5 teams have been chosen to develop their projects during the months prior to the Triennale opening in September. The selected interventions will be displayed at the After Belonging: In Residence exhibition in the National Museum of Architecture in Oslo, and debated in events during the Triennale.
The Jury states: "The jury was impressed by the ambition of this project and its potential to generate a frank and open discussion of hospitality for refugees. It addresses the Triennale’s core issues on the Torshov site and at a much larger scale. The team proposes to develop an online housing exchange modelled on home-sharing platforms, while at the same time provoking a debate about housing regulation and policy in Norway more generally."
The Jury report is available here. OPENtransformation has a facebook-page and you can follow them on Twitter too: @OPENtransform #AfterBelonging #OAT #OPENtransformation. We are following the process and looking forward to the development!
Working week was here!
During the past week, Kaleidoscope has had the company of two wonderful 9th graders from Rå Skole in Bergen, Anne and Jon Harald. In the last year of elementary school, the students spend one week in the working life, practising, working and observing at a chosen work place. We were very happy to receive the request from Anne and Jon Harald to work at Kaleidoscope, and didn't hesitate to say yes! During the week, our students were working on their first landscape model for our new project, as well as following the every day life of an architecture office, attending meetings and giving us advice on using social media. We hope to have inspired these two smart and energetic youngsters to consider architecture as a profession, and rest assured that the future is in good hands.
A little bit of Ai Weiwei
As the exhibition of Ai Weiwei continues in the newly opened HAM Helsinki, Kaleidoscope partner Miia-Liina Tommila had her first encounter with the artist's work at first hand. She talks about the experience and the dynamics of the exhibition in this lovely piece on the Grand Tour Magazine, interviewed by the founder Marianna Wahlsten.
Happy Holidays from Kaleidoscope!
We wish all of our collaborators and the readers of our stories a happy holiday season and a wonderful New Year 2016! We are looking forward to an exciting spring after a well deserved break.
Europan 13 prize ceremony around the corner
Tonight is an exciting night for many young architects. Europan Norway is announcing the winners of Europan 13 and celebrations are held in Oslo. Kaleidoscope didn't participate Europan this time, but we contributed by sending our partner Miia-Liina Tommila to be a member of the Norwegian jury. The jury has found inspiring and competent winners for the record-hitting five sites in Norway and Kaleidoscope congratulates the winners warm-heartedly!
A Tunnel Connecting Helsinki and Tallinn?
The Finnish National broadcasting company YLE has made a short report on the Talsinki workshop held earlier this autumn. The topic of the workshop was the possible infrastructure project turning Tallinn and Helsinki into a more tightly connected twin city. The report is available through YLE Areena here - exploring the possibilites on-site as well as interviewing the participants. Journalist Minna Joenniemi also wrote a story about the five visions created during the workshop, and her reflections are published here. It's all in Finnish, naturally. Luckily you need no language skills for looking at the illustrations, if you are not fluent in Finnish.
Blogging on participatory design
Kaleidoscope partner Emmi Keskisarja is reflecting on the role of participatory design in the field of architecture in a recent post at the Finnish Cultural Foundation blog. Emmi is currently working on her doctoral thesis researching design methods, and we are looking forward to see more of her ground breaking work. Those of you able to read in Finnish, take a look here.