Lasipalatsi
Lasipalatsi (
Finnish for "glass palace") is a
functionalist office building designed in the
1930s, located on
Mannerheimintie in the
Kamppi district of
Helsinki,
Finland. Lasipalatsi is one of Helsinki's most notable functionalist buildings.
An earlier building at the same location was the Turku barracks, which was destroyed in the
Finnish Civil War in
1918. Lasipalatsi, designed by three young architects
Viljo Revell,
Heimo Riihimäki and
Niilo Kokko, was built on the same site in
1936. Lasipalatsi, containing
offices,
restaurants and a
film theatre, was originally designed as a temporary building, later to be torn down to allow a larger office building to be constructed in its place. The
Varuboden grocery, Oy
Siemens AB and the
HOK ice cream bar were Lasipalatsi's most prominent businesses for decades. At the time of its opening, the film theatre
Bio Rex was one of the biggest film theatres in the city, and many formal premieres of Finnish films were shown there.
The original plans to tear down Lasipalatsi were postponed decade after decade, but the building also wasn't renovated, because its final fate was still left open. In the
1980s, large sheets advertising the Ale Pub underlined the shameful state of the worn building. Only when the Board of Construction set a threat fee, the Apartment Bureau renovated the building's outer walls. In summer
1985, the old grayish paint was replaced with through-coloured white mortar. Helsinkians opposed the destruction of the building several times, and the Museum Bureau also supported its protection.
After decades of deterioration, Lasipalatsi was protected and renovated into a culture and media centre in
1998, also containing
cafés and many corporations in the media business. The building also hosts
Internet services and exhibition halls. The
Yleisradio Morning TV is broadcast from Lasipalatsi, and next to it is the Yle Shop. The film theatre Bio Rex is specialised in showing non-mainstream cultural films.
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Lasipalatsi home page
