Helsiki Calling... (Page 2)

The Design District sprawls across 25 Street  and has boutique shops that Sell   everything from jewellery and antiques to décor ware and art If you are in a hurry and need to see the Creativity, uniqueness, design and City Culture of Helsinki within the blink of an eye, head to the Design District.

On the way to the Design District, something caught my attention. A construction divider that had been so beautifully painted that it almost looked like a Parisian street complete with colourful doors, bustling street and even a boulangerie!
Up the stairs in the University premises is Kalhama & Pippo, the largest art gallery space in Europe. That it lends its space to all that is arty and creative is obvious, what takes your breath away is the gallery's design-large movable walls, unobtrusive lighting, sunny terrace, the red stairs that lead to the office, the two flatbeds for the visitors who wish to laze and admire creativity. Says Pilvi Kalhama, owner, art curator, writer, researcher, "There are ways of looking at Creativity and design, this is just one of them."

If you do not have an eye for design or can look at a street and not notice its nuances, you would probably think of the Design District as a row of shops stacked by each other running into 25 streets. But a discerning person would know that it would take eternity to really touch every bit of Finnish design. So packed is the District with boutique shops that sell everything-jewellery, antiques, interior decor ware, clothing, art.

Wood and acrylic is spliced to make stunning jewellery at Aarikka, while at the Design Forum Finland, run by the 132year old Finnish Society of Crafts and Design, you would find denim and leather ties and cravats, and quirky lamps. At Grayscale, the red and black glass ware are made in Nuutajarvi Glass Village and at the famed Iittala store you would find the best Scandinavian design made with "clear thought". Environment gets a boost in Okra that even uses felt and recycled material for its accessories and interior items; at Dianapuisto they do not look beyond the 1960s, everything therein adheres to the 1920-1960 timeline. Old toys get countless shelves at Pop Antik; at 3union4design you would get the best of batik, lace and knit.

In the Design District even restaurants and galleries cannot afford to be staid and prosaic within their four walls. It is not just food that gets lauded at the 77-year-old Ravintola Torni; its decor that symbolises Finnish functionalism gets as many applauds.

If you think Finnish design lives far off in the Baltics, think again. You are never too far away from anything Finnish. Look at Fiskars, that sharp pair of scissors that never had competition since it came into being in 1880. And yes, the ubiquitous Nokia. It was born in a village called Nokia. In Finland, of Course... Where else?.

The End.