Ferdinand Salokangas - architeria.eu

MUSEUM OF FINNISH ARCHITECTURE
13 March - 31 May 2009

ARCHITECTURE BY FERDINAND SALOKANGAS IN ROVANIEMI

In the late 1940s, after the Second World War, Finnish architecture experienced a short-lived romantic
tendency, which was soon superseded by modernism. That romanticism did not disappear altogether at once
is shown, for instance, in the individual, picturesque buildings that architect Ferdinand Salokangas (1903–1981)
designed for Rovaniemi during the first half of the 1950s.

Salokangas worked in Rovaniemi from 1945 to 1956, leading the reconstruction work of Lapland until 1948 and
then running his own office. His contribution to the townscape ranges from public buildings to apartment blocks
and single-family houses. These charmingly sophisticated buildings often feature a free-form window in
the entrance door. His balconies and stairs often have very decorative banisters, and vivacious carvings
embellish painted window shutters and wooden corbels.

Towards the end of the 1950s, Salokangas adopted a more reduced expression following the mainstream
architecture. His stay in Rovaniemi ended when he moved to Helsinki, where he had started
his architectural career.


Curator: Charlotte Malaprade
Producer: The Provincial Museum of Lapland

-----------
CREDITS:
Text: Museum of Finnish Architecture
Photography:
1. Ferdinand Salokangas (1903–1981). Photo: The Provincial Museum of Lapland
2. Rovaniemi township office building, Valtakatu Sreet 18, 1949. Balcony detail.
Photo: The Provincial Museum of Lapland
3. Home and studio of Ferdinand Salokangas, Rovaniemi, Karhunkaatajantie Street 24, 1951–1953.
Photo: The Provincial Museum of Lapland