Lastu Nominated Candidate for Finlandia Prize for Architecture

Interior view of the Lastu education building showing the wide wooden stairs and the lobby on the second floor

Lastu,  the new education building for the STEP Professional Training Center campus in Järvenpää is one of the five projects shortlisted for the Finlandia Prize for Architecture 2024.

The Finlandia Prize for Architecture shortlist is chosen by a pre-selection jury appointed each year by SAFA. This year’s winner, presented by the Finnish Association of Architects (SAFA), will be chosen by foreign correspondent Antti Kuronen.

Exterior view of the entrance to the Lastu education building

About the Finlandia Prize for Architecture 

The Finlandia Prize for Architecture is awarded for the design or renovation design of an outstanding new building or building complex that has been completed within the past three years. The prize may be awarded either to a Finnish or foreign architect, or to an architectural firm for a project designed for a location in Finland; or to a Finnish architect or architectural firm for a project designed for a location abroad. 

The purpose of the prize is to promote the appreciation of high-quality architecture and to highlight the importance of architecture in generating cultural value and increasing well-being.

A pre-selection jury, appointed by the SAFA Board, is in charge of selecting the shortlist. The winner is chosen from among the shortlisted candidates by a selector appointed each year to the role.

This is the 11th year the Finlandia Prize for Architecture will be presented by the Finnish Association of Architects. 

  • Image bank, statement by the pre-selection jury and additional details on the shortlisted projects can be found HERE.
Interior view showing the movable wall system in the Lastu education building

Lastu – Delivering Socially and Environmentally Sustainable Development

STEP Education’s new Lastu building makes creative and thoughtful use of wood. Once they reach the end of their life span, all the structural elements of this latest addition to Step Education’s Järvenpää campus, completed last year, are suitable for recycling. 

Subtle articulation has been introduced to prevent the new building from dominating its surroundings. Similarly, the roof has been divided into a series of intersecting pitches. Though the scale of the building is very much human, the approach to architecture here is decidedly sculptural, the pre-selection jury note.

A wide staircase in the foyer serves as an informal social hub. Grouped around it, a series of learning spaces are designed to be flexible and adaptable. The foyer’s full-height and full-length windows face out towards a nearby lake, bringing the outdoors in. A series of skylights bring indirect natural light into the interiors.

Roof lantern in the Lastu education building
  • For more information on Lastu, see HERE.