Business premise design in transition – a new opportunity
I am Maiju Kianta, and I work as an interior designer at Arco. I started at Cederqvist & Jäntti in late 2019, where I immediately jumped on board the fast-moving Lippulaiva shopping centre project. In addition, I have worked at Arco on other commercial projects, office design and residential interior design in the roles of interior architect and project architect. I enjoy having the opportunity to play both roles, but my heart beats a little faster when it comes to the interior design, the surface materials and the atmosphere of a space.
In the Lippulaiva shopping centre and in the Kivistö shopping centre to be built in Vantaa, I have been part of the interior design team with a focus on the visual appearance, materials and colour scheme of the shopping aisles. In both cases, the materials inside are a continuation of the external façade. The materials used in Lippulaiva include Corten steel, perforated sheet metal and brick, all of which are united by their roughness, durability and timelessness. It has made sense to build everything else around these strong materials. In my design work, I think it is important to support a coherent visual appearance of the site, that the different parts of the building, the façade, the interior appearance, the materials and the form speak the same language. The building must be seen as a whole with its interior, and I find it positive that the interior design is closely involved in the project from the very beginning.
The Lippulaiva project was exceptional in terms of its size – a block almost 500 metres long. Lippulaiva includes a bus terminal, metro station entrances and nine residential buildings. The project emphasised teamwork and coordination of plans, both within our own team and between the other designers involved in the project. It was very inspiring to be part of a professional team, to learn from experienced colleagues and to solve complex situations together. Now that Lippulaiva has opened and work has continued on other projects, this project remains special. A project of this size has given us the opportunity to work on a wide range of design aspects, from the look of the shopping aisle to the interior design of the residential buildings.
With the pandemic, business premise design is in a state of flux, with the changing needs of the working environment and the adaptability and versatility of spaces shaking up the traditional office space. No longer is a designer piece of furniture the pinnacle of high-quality design, but a holistic experience of space that combines functionality, aesthetics, ecology and sustainability. For example, sustainable development is considered through the life cycle of a material or service – what happens to a material at the end of its life cycle? For designers, frugal use of materials and recycling will become increasingly important in the future. As with the architectural design of buildings, interior design looks decades into the future.
I am involved in the planning of the future Arco Helsinki office extension. For us, a change of premises in the moment is an excellent way to respond to changing work needs and the demands of hybrid working. The extension is also an opportunity to support and develop a new way of working and to offer new, more flexible space solutions. The design has been based on versatile retreats, areas for quiet work, mobile meeting rooms and drop-in workstations for shorter sessions. In offices, the importance of meetings is highlighted, which makes the biggest difference to work. Overall, the aim of the extension is to create a comfortable working space for us that supports interaction and is an attractive workplace.
Maiju Kianta
Interior Architect
