Category Archives: Events / Exhibitions

A TROPICAL NIGHT RIDE

By Hella Hernberg | Published: 29/07/2011

Photography: Johannes Romppanen

Bicycle brunches, free concerts, independent art exhibitions, hammocks, swimming and night movies. This summer Kalasatama has proved to be the perfect location to spend warm days and nights in the city.

Last wednesday, the We Love Helsinki community celebrated a Bicycle Day in Kalasatama in an almost tropical summer night. The event, created together with a number of voluntary urban activists, started at Bermuda Helsinki’s container with live music, bicycle repair and brunch for a voluntary fee, freshly roasted coffee by Kaffa, drinks from the bicycle bar, and radler (traditional cyclists’ drink) from a bicycle tank by Pelago. At 10pm, over 300 cyclists started a night ride around the centre of Helsinki. The almost endless line of riders ringing their bells and curving through the streets was a spectacular sight. (more…)

Also posted in Community, DIY, Helsinki Beyond Dreams, Kalasatama Temporary, Participation, Unfinished City | Tagged | Leave a comment

FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD

By Hella Hernberg | Published: 24/05/2011

Wild herb pizzas queuing for the oven in Kalasatama

Last Saturday 21 May was a historical day in Helsinki. For one day, anyone could start their own pop-up restaurant, anywhere, and regardless of what the rules say. The first ever Ravintolapäivä (Restaudant Day) was a carneval-like celebration in favour of richer food cultures and against rules that sometimes make food such a complicated question. Organised through a Facebook event, small and original restaurants popped up just for a few hours – on the streets, parks, clothing shops or homes, offering tapas, drinks, smoothies, popsicles and even fancy dinners served at home in the evening. (more…)

Also posted in Community, DIY, Helsinki Beyond Dreams, Participation, Unfinished City | Tagged | 1 Comment

JUGAAD – PRACTICE OF MAKING DO

By Hella Hernberg | Published: 03/05/2011

Jugaad canopy by Sanjeev Shankar. Photograph by Sundeep Bali

Recently, I have been collecting information about low-resource innovations in developing countries. During my stay in New York, I ran across a very insightful exhibition at the AIA center for architecture: “Jugaad Urbanism”. The show presents creative strategies of making do  - solutions to survival with a lack of resources by people living in the big cities of India. (more…)

Also posted in Brief Notes from New York, Community, DIY, Rethinking Design, Sustainability | 1 Comment

SOMETHING ELSE

By Hella Hernberg | Published: 25/01/2011

“What if we, ordinary people, could decide what kinds of messages we see on a bus stop, for a change”. This was the idea of Elissa Eriksson, art education student who became tired of the overload of commercial messages in public space. Last December, she started a Facebook campaign, called “Haluan nähdä muutakin/ I want to see something else” to free some space from bus stop advertisements.

Elissa describes how her idea was born, last November: “I was waiting for a tram, thinking about my master’s thesis, which discusses the possibilities of ordinary people to participate legally in shaping their urban environment. Watching the advertisements at the tram stop, it occurred to me that you could comment on them from within the structures. I thought that I could possibly gather a group of friends to rent one tram stop.” (more…)

Also posted in Community, DIY, New Economies, Participation | Tagged | Leave a comment

HEL YES! TAKE 2

By Hella Hernberg | Published: 14/12/2010

Overview of the HEL YES! interior in London. Photo by Adam Laycock

The HEL YES! project, which has recently gained a lot of publicity in London, is now travelling towards Helsinki. In January 2011, an industrial hall in the former harbour area of Kalasatama will be transformed into a temporary restaurant. The project was first organised by the Finnish Institute in London, in order to promote Finnish culture during the London Design festival in September 2010. In Helsinki, the project will be presented as it was in London. (more…)

Also posted in Kalasatama Temporary | Tagged , | Leave a comment

  • Urban Dream Management is an urban practice focusing on the creative use of space and new collective ways for creating more attractive and inspiring environments.

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