Nordic Journal of Architectural Research / Nordisk Arkitekturforskning

Grahn, Patrik

Swedish

Tuormala, Petri

Architectural Policy Programmes in Finland - Perspectives on Local Level

In this article, I deal with two contrary, sometimes complementary perspectives on the city. A city may be regarded as a physical stage in which human actions (lives) "take place". A city may also be regarded as a system comprising the life events of a local community, one of the most important of which is building up a scenario in which that life is to be played out. I refer to the first as a structural perspective, or a geometrical planning paradigm, the second is an action perspective, or a historical paradigm, which can be traced in the etymology itself (Greek polis is translated to Latin civitas, which is then transformed to city). I show the practical consequences of this change with regard to the ideal of what urban planning is. In the geometrical paradigm, planning is dominated by the logical scientific approach, and expert rhetoric. In the historical paradigm, the city is a result of a dialogue based on health rhetoric to which attention must be paid if we truly aspire to unite planning and democracy

Stadens dubbla betydelse eller Stadsbyggnad som logik och som retorik

Eriksson, Jan

Jungen, Britta

Funderingar

Tidskrift för ARKITEKTURFORSKNING Volym 4, Nr 2,1991 103 
Lägenhetsträdgårdar 
- en återupptäckt princip att arrangera flerfamiljshusens 
utemiljö 
Lena Jarlöv 
Dalarnas Forskningsråd, Falun; Bostadsplanering, CTH 
Artikelns huvudtes är att möjligheterna att tillämpa till synes självklara 
lösningar inom ekologiskplanering, t ex lägenhetsträdgårdar, är beroende 
av styrkeförhållandena mellan konsumtionskultur och produktionskultur 
och mellan linjärt tänkande och kretsloppstänkande. 
Denna artikel handlar om möjligheterna 
att tillämpa ett aktuellt forskningsresultat 
i praktiken. Föremålet för forskningen är 
lägenhetsträdgården. Ordet är nyuppfun-
net, men företeelsen är gammal. Med lä-
genhetsträdgårdar menar vi trädgårdar för 
människor som bor i lägenhet i flerfamiljs-
hus. Det kan vara bottenvåningsträdgårdar 
eller friliggande, mycket små trädgårdar 
eller lite större, där man får plats med en 
sittmöbel eller tillräckligt stora för att rym-
ma ett lusthus eller en redskapsbod. De 
kan ligga på kvartersmark eller närbelägen 
parkmark. 
Som inom så många andra områden 
inom det vi kallar ekologiskt byggande 
och planering så handlar det här om en 
gammal självklarhet, som glömts bort. 
Denna typ av forskning som ägnar sig åt 
att "damma av" gamla bortglömda erfaren-
heter har snarast karaktären av upptäckan-
de. Upptäckten av lägenhetsträdgården 
leder i sin tur till åtminstone två nya fråge-
ställningar: 1) frågan om varför denna till 
synes självklara princip för organisering 
av utemiljön glömts bort eller rättare, ald-
rig kom att tillämpas i någon nämnvärd 
omfattning i Sverige och 2) frågan om 
implementeringen, dvs hur denna upptäckt 
ska kunna komma till användning. 
Svaret på den första frågan har bety-
delse för svaret på den andra. Svaret på 
varför är viktigt för bedömningen av rea-
lismen i våra ambitioner att väcka princi-
pen för lägenhetsträdgårdar till liv i Sve-
rige. 
Jag tror att svaret på frågan ligger i den 
mentala snarare än i den fysiska strukturen. 
Jag vill använda ett par begrepp som min 
kollega Birgitta Holmdahl gjort mig upp-
märksam på - konsumtions- respektive 
produktionskultur (Holmdahl, 1991).Om 
jag benämner den kultur som utvecklats 
och förstärkts i den rika världen under in-
dustrialismen konsumtionskultur, så för-
står var och en vad jag menar utan att jag 
behöver närmare precisera det. Jag vill då 
påstå att vi idag kan skönja en idériktning 
som börjar vända sig från denna konsum-
tionskultur och peka i riktning mot en pro-
Lågenhetsträdgårdar i modern flerbostadsbebyggelse. Witten-Annen, Tyskland. 
duktionskultur. Den "ekologiska" rörelsen 
är ett uttryck för detta, med ingredienser 
som lokal produktion, informellt arbete 
etc. Men produktionskulturen är inte ut-
tryck för något nytänkande i egentlig me-
ning. Från att före industrialismen ha va-
rit den förhärskande kulturformen har den 
legat under ytan, tills nu, men hela tiden 
funnits levande och burits upp av stora 
grupper av befolkningen i deras vardagsliv. 
Vi kan idag se uttryck för denna kultur t ex 
i det omfattande självbyggeriet av fritids-
hus, i kolonirörelsen och fritidsodlingen 
och i delar av småbåtsrörelsen. De sam-
hällsgrupper som är tongivande inom sam-
hällsplaneringen - högre tjänstemän fram-
för allt - ser emellertid i allmänhet denna 
kultur som något som är skilt från vardags-
verkligheten. Den hör semestern och vec-
kosluten till och man måste fara bort till ett 
fritidsboställe för att utöva den, vilket de 
själva gör. Följden har blivit att alla de 
stadsbor som bor i lägenhet och saknar fri-
tidshus i stort sett berövats möjligheten att 
ta del av produktionskulturen och på heltid 
är hänvisade till konsumtionskulturen. 
Underheladennaepok har näringslivets 
ansträngningar varit inriktade på att om-
vandla kvarstående rester av produktions-
kulturen till konsumtionskultur - plastbå-
tar, prefabricerade fritidshus etc. 
Principen att upplåta kvartersmark och 
parkmark till enskilda trädgårdar som sköts 
av boende i flerfamiljshusen är ett steg 
frän konsumtionskulturen tillbaka mor pro-
duktionskulturen, vilket kan vara en förkla-
ring till det ointresse den rönt, både från 
planerare och från byggare och förvaltare 
sen 1920-talet, då den även i Sverige hade 
en del ideologiska förespråkare inom träd-
gårdsstadsrörelsen. Att också boendekol-
lektivet omfattat detta ointresse kan före-
falla märkligt, men beror sannolikt på att 
det i sina organiserade former oftast före-
trätts av representanter för den politik som 
vägletts av näringslivets inriktning mot en 
sysselsättningsskapandeomvandling/ran 
produktionskultur f/7/konsumtionskultur. 
Lena Jarlöv: Lägenhetsträdgårdar 105 
Ett annat sätt att placera in "lägenhets-
trädgårdar" i ett tankesystem är att se på 
den industriella epoken som ett linjärt sys-
tem gentemot det kretsloppstänkande som 
den "ekologiska" rörelsen nu försöker föra 
in. I det linjära systemets rationalitet är det 
mänskliga hantverksmässiga vårdandet en 
orationell krök på vägen. Såväl de flesta 
parker som flerfamiljshusens kvartersmark 
består till stor del av ytor som sköts på ett, 
i det linjära perspektivet, effektivt och ra-
tionellt sätt, med stora insatser av energi 
och bekämpningsmedel. I ett kretslopps-
perspektiv däremot utgör marken runt och 
mellan husen en värdefull resurs för om-
händertagande av dagvatten och använd-
ning av organiska restprodukter och s k 
gråvatten från hushållen i produktion av 
växtlighet till nytta och skönhet. Härvid 
kommer tanken osökt in på de boende som 
viktiga agenter i detta skeende och lägen-
hetsträdgårdar blir en nära till hands lig-
gande lösning. Produktionskulturens in-
tressen sammanfaller alltså här med krets-
loppstänkandets. 
Möjligheterna att implementera idéer 
om lägenhetsträdgårdar blir således bero-
ende av om utvecklingen går i riktning 
mot en produktionskultur och ett krets-
loppstänkande. Omvänt kan man anta att 
utvecklingen i en sådan riktning i någon 
mån påverkas av de förslag till lösningar 
på olika områden som framkommer. Att 
trädgårdsstadsidéerna på 20-talet inte för-
Efter en plan över kv Vättlefjäll, Bagaregården, Göteborg. Planen är ritad 1914 av 
Harald Falkman efter skiss till kvartersutformning av Albert Lilienberg (Horgby & 
Jarlöv 1991). Den genomfördes troligen aldrig. Kanske är det dags nu? 
Varför kan inte marken i flerbostadsområden få se ut så här? Varför måste detta för-
visas till särskilda odlingslottsområden? Bergsjön, Göteborg. 
mådde stå emot den linjära konsumtions-
kulturens planeringsprinciper ens i Tysk-
land, trots de briljanta exempel på lösningar 
med lägenhetsträdgårdar som gjordes där 
av bl a arkitekterna Ernst May och Bruno 
Taut i samarbete med trädgårdsarkitekten 
Leberecht Migge visarpå styrkeförhållan-
dena mellan dessa båda kulturer. Har de 
ändrats tillräckligt idag för att det ska vara 
mödan värt med ett nytt försök? Det får vi 
inte veta förrän långt efteråt. Vad vi, som 
tror att produktionskultur och kretslopps-
tänkande är nödvändigt för en hållbar glo-
bal utveckling, kan göra, är att försöka bi-
dra till att stärka de krafter som arbetar i 
den riktningen genom att förse dem med 
kunskap, idéer, förebilder och argument. 
Litteratur 
Jarlöv Lena: Vad betyder olika faktorer i 
bostadsmiljön för efterfrågan på fri-
tidshus? Fritidsboendekommitténs 
underlag nr 6, Bostadsdepartementet, 
1980. 
Jarlöv, Lena: Boende och skaparglädje. 
Människors behov av skapande verk-
samhet - en försummad dimension i 
samhällsplaneringen, CTH 1982. 
Bergquist, Magnus & Jarlöv, Lena: Kolo-
nistuga hemmavid. Utvärdering av Löv-
kojan - en närkoloni i Göteborg. CTH 
1988. 
Bergquist, Magnus: Trädgårdens betydel-
ser för folk i flerfamiljshus. CTH 1989. 
Horgby, Charlotte & Jarlöv, Lena: Lägen-
hetsträdgårdar - ett nygammalt sätt 
attförbättra bostadsmiljön. By^forsk-
ningsrådet TI: 1991. 
Holmdahl, Birgitta: Staden möter landet, 
Bostadsplanering, CTH-A1991 (under 
tryckning). 


Nevanlinna, Arne

Tidskrift för ARKITEKTURFORSKNING Volym 4, Nr 4, 1991 119 
Socio-cultural Notes on the State 
of Finnish Architects and Architecture 
Arne Nevanlinna 
Helsinki University of Technology I denna artikel diskuterar Arne Nevanlinna vad som kan kallas arkitektu-
rens centrala kunskapsproblem - den nödvändiga och känsliga balansen 
mellan beprövadyrkeserfarenhet ("praktikerns kunskap " ) och vetenskaplig 
kunskap ("teoretikerns kunskap"). Han exemplifierar sitt resonemang 
med ett uppmärksammat tjänstetillsättningsärende vid arkitekturskolan i 
Otaniemi. 
Enligt Nevanlinna är denna strukturella konflikt mellan "praktiker" 
och " teoretiker" mer djupgående än i de andra nordiska länderna, något 
som bland annat visar sig i att man i Finland bibehållit den internationella 
modernismens idéer i en utsträckning som inteförekommer i andra länder. 
De begrepp Nevanlinna använder för att belysa arkitekturprofessionens 
kunskapsfrågor år: 'auktoritetsorientering', 'etablissemang' och 'myt'. 
Hans poäng är att dessa begrepp visserligen kan användas vid analysen 
av alla existerande professioner - men att resultatet blir speciellt tydligt 
och, kanske, förödande, vid en analys av arkitektprofessionen. 
This is an attempt to reveal some of the less obvious motives behind the de-
cisions made by Finnish architects and institutions in professional matters. 
Finn Weme's input (Tidskrift för Arkitekturforskning, vol 3,1-2/1990) has 
been a general reference as well as a fruitful incentive for the line of thought 
in this article. The process of selecting the professor in Public Building De-
sign at the Otaniemi school of architecture serves as an illuminating ex-
ample for how decisive these concealed criteria may be. The conclusion 
presents some basic alternatives on how the quality of the architects' edu-
cation in Finland could be improved. 
The Selection Process 
The post will be vacant after Osmo Lappo who has been professor for al-
most 25 years. The subject area is considered to be the most prominent one 
among the 11 professorships in the Faculty. 
120 Arne Nevanlinna 
A lack of interest in academic teaching among the Finnish architects was 
indicated by the fact that there were only three applicants: Arvi Ilonen, 
practitioner with teaching experience from Tampere (Tammerfors), Juhani 
Katainen, professor of architecture in Tampere, and Osmo Mikkonen, pro-
fessor of architecture in Oulu (Uleåborg). 
The selected experts were Matti Mäkinen, former professor in Oulu and 
at present director general of the National Board of Building, Jan Henriks-
son, professor of architecture in Stockholm, mdArne Henriksen, professor 
of architecture in Oslo. Their statement was unanimous: None of the app-
licants was considered to be qualified for the position. In February 1991 the 
faculty board decided to agree with the experts. This, however, reflects 
only the professors ' view since, according to the university regulations, the 
rest of the board members (teachers, students) are excluded from decisions 
concerning the selection of new professors. 
The fact that the three applicants, declared incompetent by both the ex-
perts and the faculty, included two professors in the same area in other uni-
versities caught some public attention. Four comments about the matter 
have been published in one newspaper (Uusi Suomi). The question was 
raised as to how it was possible to find the same applicants competent a few 
years back and incompetent now. 
Concealed Motives 
Understanding the selection process requires an analysis of some funda-
mental characteristics of the Finnish professional atmosphere. 
Relevant conceptions in this case are authority-orientation, establish-
ments and myths, all touching the core of not only the profession but Finnish 
society in general. These characteristics may have positive or negative con-
sequences depending on the context. My argument is that in this particular 
process of selecting the professor and in terms of the comprehensive inte-
rests of the society, these phenomena have affected the process negatively. 
Authority-orientation 
Social structures based on authoritarian hierarchies have deep roots in the 
colonial past of Finland. They still dominate the society in general and the 
profession of architects in particular. The cultural climate is marked by sub-
mittance to conventions represented by those in power in the society as well 
as in the profession. 
Socio-cultural Notes on the State of Finnish Architects and Architecture 121 
In most cases, the opinion leaders do not have to exercise their power by 
force as their standpoints have been internalized in advance by the subjects 
themselves. When faced with a problem, people automatically follow the 
conventions defined and maintained by an accepted authority in the matter. 
Reaching decisions through discussion and intellectual processes is not the 
mle. 
Establishments 
The formation of establishments within the various institutions of the so-
ciety is a natural consequence of authoritarian structures, administrational 
as well as spiritual. An establishment is characterized by internal (or frater-
nal) unanimity and solidarity, high prestige - and the denial of the exist-
ence of itself. 
This applies to architects as well. The dominant conception of architecture 
as well as rules of how to interpret it are given by a relatively small-num-
bered inner circle operating like a club. The members, practically all of 
them design practitioners, do not have to impose their stand-point on the 
common architect; in an authority-oriented society the rulers and the mied 
need each other. This is why both parties tend to be a bit offended when 
faced with an analysis based on power structures. 
Important positions cannot be filled without the consent of this estab-
lishment: the chairman of S AFA, the chief editor of the magazine Arkkitehti, 
the director of the Museum of Finnish Architecture, etc. In fact, the selec-
tions are often made in advance by the inner circle, and the actual election 
process remains a formality only. 
In the schools, the professors are the establishment. Students, teachers 
and the personnel are represented in the faculty board but have little in-
fluence, not only because they are in minority but also because they have 
submitted themselves to thinking that professors know better. The occasional 
dissident does not want to jeopardize his/her career by contradicting the 
professors. All important committees, task forces etc. are dominated by 
professors, leaving the resources of the rest of the teaching personnel large-
ly unused. 
Myths 
The achievements and the reputation of Finnish architecture have fertilized 
the ground for a rich set of professional myths. Earlier, the myths certainly 
122 Arne Nevanlinna 
have been fruitful sources of self-confidence and inspiration for Finnish 
architects. They are still needed, but the problem now is that the profession 
seems to be unable to renew the myths in accordance with the changes in 
the society. 
Gradually, the myths have lost their original function and become, like 
the professional institutions, instruments for the establishment in distin-
guishing itself and maintaining its position within the profession. In the 
process of selecting the professor some myths seem to hold direct relevance: 
7. Ultimately, architecture is art, or rather, the mother of all arts 
The conception as promoted by the Finnish establishment of architects is 
adapted from the art theories where architecture is understood as art based 
on individual experiences guided by a collection of archetypes, represented 
by ideal (geometric) forms and stored in the collective, subconscious memory 
of man in all times and cultures. 
The most prominent spokesman for this approach is Juhani Pallasmaa. 
Criticism toward this conception is effectively rejected by mystifying the 
origins of architecture: It is hard to argue against myths which are declared 
inexplicable by definition. 
Consequently, western-originated international vocabularies like clas-
sicism and modernism are preferred to culturally oriented architectures 
richer in variation and expression. Urban design and planning, both part of 
the education of Finnish architects, do not very well fit into this artistically 
oriented, psychological conception of architecture. As urban problems in-
evitably have a social content, they are not in the focus of the establishment's 
interests. This is visible also in the content of the magazine Arkkitehti. 
2. The future of Finnish architecture is in International Modernism 
The myth contains not only the visual outlook but also the method of de-
sign. Fully adapted by the Finnish architects is the modernistic process start-
ing with functions ex ressed in the program and proceeding in a "logical" 
sequence to the final solution. Only few of the best architects have shown 
ability to use more creative approaches. The shortcomings in the overall 
quality of the built environment in Finland may be seen as a direct conse-
quence of the dominance of international modernism. 
3. Heroism: The development of architecture is lead by individual gifted 
designer-architects 
They are regarded as absolute authorities, not only in architectural design 
but also in all other professional matters, including the criteria for select-
Socio-cultural Notes on the State of Finnish Architects and Architecture 123 
ing professors. Merits like teaching and research never overcome design 
qualifications. Schools of architecture are not seen as places where archi-
tecture can be developed. 
4. Corporative consensus: Internal solidarity is necessary to protect the 
profession against outside attacks 
The content of the consensus is dictated by the establishment. This prevents 
criticism and development of other approaches to professional matters. As 
Finn Werne pointed out, the profession may be considered strong when it 
is well integrated into the society, and vice versa, a weak profession turns 
inwards isolating itself from the society. In these terms, the profession of 
Finnish architects is weak. 
Overemphasizing the artistic content of architecture is bound to keep a 
distance to the rest of the society. As a result, the gap between professional 
and public conceptions of architecture in Finland remains quite wide. 
Improving the Quality: Professorial Strategy 
Recently, the educational quality of the Otaniemi faculty has been criticized 
for serving too directly the needs of practising architects, thus giving up its 
potential avant-garde position within the profession to the leading designers. 
This is understandable as most of the professors have their own offices. In 
order to protect their prestige the professors keep silent in public. Among 
themselves however, the need of changes has obviously been recognized. 
The strategy of the professors is definitely not based on self-criticism. 
Faithful to the established conception of architecture, the professors seem 
to favour a resurrection of heroism. Getting hold of famous designers 
would in their opinion improve the educational standard and enhance the 
presently low motivation of the students. 
The first move of the professors into this direction was to select experts 
known for sharing their conception of architecture. The experts followed 
suit: As intended, achievements in architectural design were given absolute 
preference to other merits. As criteria the experts used not only the archi-
tectural (=artistic) quality of implemented buildings but also success in 
architectural competitions orprofessionalexhibitions (i.e. "Finland Builds" 
at five years intervals). 
Thus, all criteria involved in the process are based on subjective evalua-
tions by architects having the same view of architecture: professors, experts, 
juries of competitions and exhibitions. The process was secured in advance 
to be protected against outside influences. 
124 Arne Nevanlinna 
Of course, the professors cannot blame the lack of competent applicants on 
anyone else but themselves. Most of the professors have been around long 
enough to educate architects for wider interests than the most pragmatic 
ones, had they only been able or willing to do so. As things are now, the Ota-
niemi school wavers somewhere between a vocational training school and 
an academic faculty of a university. 
This is said with full awareness of the benefits of the long tradition of 
handicraft-oriented methods in the training of architects. The question is 
whether this is enough for meeting the problems of the modem society. 
Rather than encouraging the discussion between alternative concep-
tions of architecture and teaching, the establishment sticks to its position 
by issuing absolute statements about architecture. One example: The inter-
national Alvar Aalto symposium, arranged every third year in Jyvaskyla, 
is used by the Finnish establishment as a forum for strengthening their pro-
fessional prejudices (most notably the somewhat naive faith in internatio-
nal modernism), instead of exposing their standpoints to international dis-
cussion and criticism. 
Improving the Quality: Alternative Strategies 
What are the professors going to do now? The faculty board has already de-
cided for a wait-and-see attitude. Temporary professors will be invited for 
shorter periods of time, and the probability that they will include foreigners 
is high. 
Wherever they come from, their contributions will obviously not con-
sist of participation in the long-term development of the faculty. This is a 
risk: The substance of the education has been stagnant for some twenty years 
now, and the role of the leading professor in the faculty would be crucial 
in terms of acting as a primus motor when trying to cope with new challenges 
to the education. 
One way to break this deadlock would be to widen up the criteria for 
competencies to include teaching and research as well. If these merits were 
taken into account on equal basis with design achievements, culturally 
oriented architects would become eligible for professorships adding to the 
number of potentially qualified applicants. 
In this context, cultural orientation includes enlarging the range of pro-
fessional careers to teaching, research, writing about architecture, etc. 
These new activity areas call for more intellectual capacities than is needed 
in the conventional design process based on intuition, or in the pragmati-
cally oriented teaching in the schools of architecture. 
Socio-cultural Notes on the State of Finnish Architects and Architecture 125 
As things stand now, this is Utopia in Finland. The international practice 
that a doctorate should be a basic requirement for a professor in architecture 
will not become true in a foreseeable future. For architects, the way toward 
a more tolerant and democratic atmosphere seems to be even harder than 
for the rest of the Finnish society. 
The Students Hold a Key Position 
So far, the blame for the stagnant situation in the school has been put on the 
professors only. In fact, the problem is not as simple as that. 
The professors are able to exercise their power position freely because 
other categories of the academic community remain passive. 
This concerns especially the students. Their interest is focused on some-
thing else than the development of their own education; also this may be 
seen as an indicator for their low motivation and the fact that a more inspiring 
and challenging learning environment is found outside the school. The in-
coming recession along with fewer job opportunities for the students may 
soon change all this. 
Changes toward a more progressive educational system will not happen 
without active participation of the students. The events twenty years back 
may serve as a reference. The students managed to achieve some of their 
objectives in an amazingly short time, just on the basis of their concentrated 
effort, conviction and enthusiasm. 
This is needed once again. The last time, the ideals were social and politi-
cal. This time they could be less world-embracing, concentrating on pro-
blems of the professional and academic quality in architects' education. 
Even more than the Finnish society as a whole, the architects are chal-
lenged by the demand of integration. The profession has to find and establish 
a new position both internationally and within its own society. The time 
when architects could rely on the reputation and past achievements of 
famous Finnish architects is definitely gone. 
126 
"TILL FOLKET I ERIKSBO AV ELY MAOZ TILLSAMMANS MED ERIKSBOBORNA 28 JUNI 1979" 
Målningen är ett kollektivt minne frän dem som var med till dem som nu bor i Eriksbo. 
Tillbyggnaden på gaveln inrymmer ettfritidshem. Skolan skymtar i bakgrunden. (Foto 
Lars Nyman.) 


English

Socio-cultural Notes on the state of Finnish Architects and Architecture

Bernfeld, Dan

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Architectural Policy Programmes in Finland - Perspectives on Local Level

Stadens dubbla betydelse eller Stadsbyggnad som logik och som retorik

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Socio-cultural Notes on the state of Finnish Architects and Architecture

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