Architecture - thisisFINLAND

Creating architecture and art from ice and snow in the Finnish far north

A rare, fascinating kind of construction expertise is on display in the wintery landscape of Finnish Lapland. We head north for a look at buildings made out of snow and ice.

Life & society Sustainability

Self-sufficient organic Finnish farm grows its own fuel and a greener future

An award-winning farm has teamed up with Helsinki University to create a symbiotic food production system that is self-sufficient in energy and nutrients. It’s a trailblazer in sustainable agriculture.

Life & society Culture

Explore Finland online: Sit back and enjoy the show

Here are options from all over Finland for seeing world-class art, architecture and performances without leaving home. Sometimes restrictions, cost or sheer distance can keep you from making a trip to see a show or an exhibition.

2005

The year Helsinki Design Week, Scandinavia's biggest design fest, was founded

Life & society Wellbeing

Summer in the city: An open-air pool beckons in the heart of Helsinki

Helsinki Swimming Stadium is an oasis. In a park in the middle of the Finnish capital, you can swim in a heated, Olympic-size outdoor pool or work out at an open-air gym.

Life & society Architecture

Helsinki’s renovated Olympic Stadium launches into a new era

The Olympic Stadium was unveiled four years after extensive renovations began. Its 1930s functionalist architecture and design have been meticulously preserved and enhanced with 21st-century technology and facilities (see photo show).

Arts & culture Slideshows

Lux Helsinki fends off the winter darkness

Full of illuminated surprises, the annual Lux Helsinki light festival uses coloured beams to transform some of the city’s best loved buildings and streets in early January. You can see them in our photos without braving the cold.

Life & society Society

Helsinki invests in its people with a library that reinvents the genre

Helsinki’s new central library, Oodi, is the place to go if you want to read a book, meet up with your friends, borrow a cello or cut metal with lasers.

Arts & culture Museums

Helsinki’s Amos Rex reaches new heights and new audiences

Architecturally faithful renovations and additions turn a landmark building in Helsinki into Finland’s newest large-scale cultural attraction.