Helsinki Central Library Oodi

Coordinates: 60°10′26″N 24°56′17″E / 60.1738°N 24.9381°E / 60.1738; 24.9381
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Helsinki Central Library Oodi
Helsingin keskustakirjasto Oodi
Helsingfors centrumbibliotek Ode
Oodi in 2021
Map
60°10′26″N 24°56′17″E / 60.1738°N 24.9381°E / 60.1738; 24.9381
LocationKluuvi, Helsinki, Finland
TypePublic library
Established5 December 2018; 5 years ago (2018-12-05)
Branch ofHelsinki City Library
Collection
Size100,000 books[1]
Other information
DirectorAnna-Maria Soininvaara
AffiliationHelMet
Websitewww.oodihelsinki.fi/en/

The Helsinki Central Library Oodi (Finnish: Helsingin keskustakirjasto Oodi; Swedish: Helsingfors centrumbibliotek Ode), commonly referred to as Oodi (lit. 'ode'), is a public library in Helsinki, Finland. The library is situated in the Kluuvi district, close to Helsinki Central Station and next to Helsinki Music Centre and Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art. Despite its name, the library is not the main library in the Helsinki City Library system, which is located in Pasila instead;[1] "central" refers to its location in the city centre.

History[edit]

A design competition in 2012 to build the library was won by the Finnish architectural firm ALA Architects and structural design by Ramboll Finland.[2][3] ALA Architects won the commission over 543 other competitors.[4] The library was planned to be a three-story building and to include a sauna (which hasn't materialised as of 2021) and a ground-floor movie theatre.[5] In January 2015, the Helsinki City Council voted 75–8 to launch the building project. The estimated costs of the new library was €98 million, of which the state agreed to pay €30 million in connection with the centenary of Finland's independence in 2017. The City of Helsinki budgeted €66 million for the building.[6]

On December 31, 2016, it was announced that the new library would be named Oodi in Finnish and Ode in Swedish. The name was selected from a pool of some 1,600 names proposed by the public. According to Helsinki Deputy City Director Ritva Viljanen, "Oodi" was chosen because it's easy to remember, easy to say, and easy to translate. The selection jury also did not want to name the new library after a person.[7]

The library was built in the Töölönlahti district next to Helsinki Music Centre and Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art and inaugurated on 5 December 2018 on the eve of the Finnish Independence Day.[8][6][9][10]

Awards[edit]

In 2019, the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) named Oodi as the best Public Library of the Year.[11]

Services[edit]

Specially designed robots transport books to the third floor that has an 17,200-square-metre (185,000 sq ft) area designated for books. The rest of the space is designed for meetings and events.[4][10]

The National Audiovisual Institute (KAVI) organizes regular archival film screenings at the Kino Regina cinema, located since 2019 in the Helsinki Central Library Oodi.[12]

Gallery[edit]

  • Corner of the building
    Corner of the building
  • From the east, days after opening in 2018
    From the east, days after opening in 2018
  • Entrance, ground floor
    Entrance, ground floor
  • View to the Parliament House
    View to the Parliament House
  • Ground floor
    Ground floor
  • Cafeteria
    Cafeteria
  • Double-helix staircase
    Double-helix staircase
  • Second floor, urban workshop and meeting spaces
    Second floor, urban workshop and meeting spaces
  • 3D printers of the second floor
    3D printers of the second floor
  • Smart glass rooms[13]
    Smart glass rooms[13]
  • Third floor, west wing
    Third floor, west wing
  • Third floor, east wing
    Third floor, east wing
  • The third floor of Oodi
    The third floor of Oodi
  • Rinne Cabinet announcing their Government Programme at Oodi, June 2019
    Rinne Cabinet announcing their Government Programme at Oodi, June 2019
  • Library robot without books
    Library robot without books
  • Library robot with books
    Library robot with books
  • Terrace
    Terrace
Kansalaistori Square [fi] in front of the library, with Sanoma House [fi] and Kiasma on the right
The square in winter, with Parliament House and Helsinki Music Centre on the left

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "FAQ". Helsinki Central Library Oodi. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  2. ^ "ALA Architects wins Helsinki library competition". Dezeen. 14 June 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  3. ^ "Helsinki Central Library to bring together people, stories and knowledge". Ramboll. 7 April 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  4. ^ a b Krueger, Alyson. "Where Libraries are the Tourist Attractions". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  5. ^ Rosenfeld, Karissa (18 September 2014). "New Images Take You Inside ALA's Helsinki Central Library". ArchDaily. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  6. ^ a b "State-of-the-art Helsinki library to showcase wooden architecture". Yle Uutiset. 29 January 2015. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  7. ^ Koskinen, Eva-Maria (31 December 2016). "Helsingfors nya centrumbibba fick sitt namn: Oodi" [Helsinki's new central library gets its name: Oodi]. Yle (in Swedish). Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  8. ^ "New Helsinki central library to include sauna after all". Yle Uutiset. 6 March 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  9. ^ Rogers, Thomas (2018-12-06). "Helsinki's New Library Has 3-D Printers and Power Tools. (And Some Books, Too.)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-12-17.
  10. ^ a b Henley, Jon (8 January 2024). "Libraries for the future: Europe's new wave of 'meeting places for the mind'". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  11. ^ "Helsinki's Oodi voted world's best new library for 2019". Yle. 27 August 2019. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  12. ^ "Kino Regina tar filmer till Ode" [Kino Regina takes films to Oodi]. Oodi (in Swedish). 2 July 2018. Retrieved 2021-10-05.
  13. ^ Malminen, Ulla (30 November 2018). "Tervetuloa Oodiin". Yle. Retrieved 5 July 2020.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Helsinki Central Library Oodi.
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