Kiasma
The Kiasma ( Finnish : Nykytaiteen museo Kiasma ) is a museum for contemporary art on Mannerheimintie in the Finnish capital Helsinki . Kiasma is the refined form for the biological term “ Chiasma ” (crossing) in allusion to the architectural - deconstructivist concept of the building. The museum houses the art collection of the Contemporary Art Board of the Finnish National Gallery . The museum's message is to make modern art accessible to a wide audience in an understandable way.
history
The building was designed and built by the American architect Steven Holl in 1992 following a controversial architectural competition . The building came under public criticism because the original tender was aimed exclusively at architects in the Nordic and Baltic regions. Five internationally known architects took part; In 1993, out of a total of 516 submitted works, the award went to the “Chiasma” design by Steven Holl, the only American to take part in the competition. Not only the postmodern architecture of the building caused criticism: the location of the property was also controversially discussed and led to violent protests, accompanied by petitions. In the opinion of the museum opponents, the new building is too big for the space between the equestrian statue of Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim and the main post office in Helsinki and would also cover the monument to the Finnish national hero, erected in 1960. Regardless of this, construction began in 1996 on the Mannerheimintie. The opening of the Kiasma took place at the end of May 1998.
architecture
The building consists of four floors with overlapping circular galleries. The facade consists of hand-polished aluminum and glass , the roof of pre-patinated zinc .
literature
- Jussi Tiainen: Kiasma , Finnish Building Society, 2001, ISBN 951-682-488-9 (English)
Web links
- Official website (multilingual)
Coordinates: 60 ° 10 ′ 18 ″ N , 24 ° 56 ′ 13 ″ E