The two-storey school building is located in the immediate vicinity of the Puotila metro station. The triangular-shaped building closely borders the square in front of the station and forms a protective wall from the noise of the Itäväylä motorway passing next to it. The placement has succeeded in creating a cohesive and sheltered school yard on the sunny southwest side of the plot. The shape of the building establishes a dialogue with the triangular entrance to the adjacent metro station.

The building’s facades towards the metro square and Itäväylä motorway are fair-faced light-coloured brick with simple fenestration. They fit well with the 1960s materials typical of Puotila and the essence of a public building. On the yard side, the roof overhangs the meandering facade, which is completely clad in wood. The deep eaves protects the wood cladding from the weather, while the shade it creates prevents the interior from overheating. The meandering shape in turn allows for more windows in the teaching spaces and gives the building a more small-scale appearance on the yard side.

In the interior, a tall central lobby gathers functions around it. The focal points of the lobby are the auditorium-like steps, typical of school buildings of recent years, and the functionally versatile stage, which can be opened up towards both the lobby and the gym, and is directly linked to the music teaching facilities. The triangular-shaped skylight can be read as a subtle reference to the skylights of the previous school building on the site designed by architect Osmo Sipari in 1967, which was demolished due to indoor-air problems. The idea was that the central lobby would also receive natural light through the glass-walled teaching spaces. However, when visiting the building it became apparent that during lessons, it is customary to close the classroom curtains to make it easier for the students to concentrate.

The school’s various functions have found their perfect place. The food distribution lines and the dining room open towards the courtyard and are separated from the tall central lobby so as to dampen the acoustics. The spaces for art and crafts are also available for public use in the evening and are located on the side facing the metro square, thus incorporating the school’s activities into the urban space. The maintenance access to the crafts spaces and kitchen has been placed on the southeast side of the building, while a quiet location for the administration has been found on the first floor on the metro square side. The teaching facilities are grouped into cells, as is typical for schools today. The four primary school cells and the two early childhood education cells are all located on the side of the yard oriented favourably in terms of light and with easy access to the school yard.

Source: Lauri Klemola’s review in Finnish Architectural Review  3/2023