Working with VSU to create a new 5 Ha public park for the Jätkäsaari mixed use urban extension which links directly to the historic urban fabric of Helsinki. The park forms an important link to the existing Ruoholahti area and once completed connects it with the sea at the south-eastern edge of Jätkäsaari. The park has to deal with a multitude of technical and functional requirements as well as challenging geological and climatic conditions. Underground car parking and technical service tunnels cut through the park below while requirements above ground include large play areas, sports pitches, strategic cycle and pedestrian routes. The park is also designed to be fully accessible to all users.

My role has been to work as an environmental artist and urban designer to provide artistic and design solutions to the edges of the park which meet the busy local roads. They have been a particular design challenge as it is from these points that access to the service tunnels and some of the parking areas is provided. As a result the level difference between the road and the park is at places substantial. Once the technical limitations had been established, the forms of the edges were sculpted using modelling clay. The landscape evolved to form a series of triangulated planes which disguise the various entrances and level changes in its folds.

The project is currently entering a detailed design phase with building works scheduled to start at the end of 2009.