Architecture students on Master Class course in Africa
25.04.2014
Students of architecture focused on participatory planning on their Master Class course and went on a field trip to Rwanda.
The project for the Master Class course in architecture originated from a prize from the Asko Foundation won by the architectural working group of Saija Hollmén, Jenni Reuter and Helena Sandman.
The reason why the group received the Asko Avonius prize in the autumn of 2013 was the group's praiseworthy work with architecture adapted to culture and among communities in the developing countries.
‘In the aftermath of getting the prize we discussed the possibility of holding a Master Class course for architectural students.
During the course we would learn about a foreign culture and the same kind of participatory planning that we apply in our work,’ Saija Hollmén says.
The idea developed into a plan for a Kigali Master Class course, for which the Department of Architecture got funding from the board of the Asko Foundation.
The goal of the course on construction planning was to use the methods of participatory planning to study the possibilities for architecture to improve the quality of life in developing countries.
Field trip to thought-provoking Rwanda
At the beginning of the course, a two-week field trip was arranged to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.
The students acquainted themselves with local conditions and visualised their own planning tasks together with local residents.
‘We learned about Rwandan history, politics, construction, urban planning and research at lectures in Kigali.
With the help of local architecture students we interviewed village residents and investigated what they might need for the improvement of their quality of life,’ says architecture student Pyry Kantonen.
‘In the interviews we tried to read between the lines and find common ground and problems for which we would seek solutions.
The most educational experience was, nevertheless, to walk around in the city, eat in local restaurants, and spend time with local students with whom we made friends.
The image that we get about Africa from the media is quite one-sided, and not necessarily even up-to-date.
For instance, in Rwanda we were surprised by the clean streets, the safety and the ease with which everything worked - we had not expected those based on previous information.
The trip was an eye-opening experience,’ Kantonen says.
Peter Rich's infectious energy
The construction design part of the course took place in Finland.
One of the instructors was South African architect Peter Rich, whose previous experiences in Rwanda had also been a factor in the selection of the target country.
Rich was in Kigali and guided the students over a period of several weeks in Otaniemi.
Rich's deep understanding of the African concept of space and African culture was definitely a high point of the course.
‘Peter was full of energy and had an appropriate amount of creative madness, which inspired us to work in a liberated manner.
With the help of his Rwandan contacts he organised wonderful lectures and visits in Kigali for us.
We immediately got the feeling that we are involved in a real project with meaning, not just an ordinary course at school,’ Pyry Kantonen says.
‘Peter Rich's down-to-earth attitude, his infallible architectural instinct, and his dedication to teaching brought depth and energy to the course.
We are privileged to have had an architect, who has won international awards, teaching such an intensive course for Aalto students,’ notes Saija Hollmén.
An exhibition on the results of the course will be compiled for display at the Artek store on Pohjois-Esplanadi in Helsinki between 25.4.- 10.5. 2014.The exhibition will present content of the course in photographs and drawings, and two areas that were targets of the planning. Each student will also produce a scale model of his or her design.
In addition, a short documentary shot by Pyry Kantonen in both Rwanda and Finland will be presented.
The trailer is available on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-b8ASy0W5BY&feature=youtu.be.
The project can be followed on line http://masterclass.lumihub.com/