Espoo x Helsinki relocated

The event connects two icons of public furniture from Espoo and Helsinki: the solid and weighty ''Espoo Bench'', and the lighter-framed Helsinki D8 Birch-Leg Bench (HKI), in which cast iron, oak, and pine, as well as different historical periods, converge. We move and engage in discussion through acts of sitting and being within the urban space of Tapiola, momentarily bringing Helsinki and Espoo together.

From these two bench icons, a hybrid version emerges through metal, wood, weather, chance, joining, and interdependencies—perhaps also through waiting, release, and necessities. Participants are welcome to bring small metal, wooden, or other objects, whether related to the theme or entirely unrelated. Objects contributed during the event will be pledged and incorporated into the new bench version or one of its components after the event, through melting or other forms of physical joining.

During the event, wishes and reflections will also be gathered regarding where—in Helsinki, Espoo, or elsewhere in the world—there is a need for publicly accessible spaces for life, public art, and temporary autonomy.

Parts of the process will later be presented as a short documentary or photographic work, as well as another bench version in which soft and hard values and the concept of functional aesthetics intersect.

The event is part of Master of Arts Paula Karvonen’s public art development project and accompanying article, which examine the dissolving structures of urban/public space and economic concepts, as well as democracy, anxiety, and temporary autonomies. Funding for the project is also being sought through dialogue and various forms of collaboration.

Instagram:
@arkmuoto @archinfo_finland @sosiososiososio @biotheatre @paulahelenaka

Registration:
By 1 February 2026
via text message: +358 50 376 2005
or email: sosio@sosio.fi