Ella Kaira and Matti Jänkälä on the soft side of architecture

Architects Ella Kaira and Matti Jänkälä like to explore the soft side of architecture, diving deep into the stories behind the buildings and focusing on redistributing instead of new construction. This November, the duo explored these themes in New York, a city known for its iconic architecture.

Our Architects-in-Residence during November were Matti Jänkälä and Ella Kaira, the brains behind the architectural practice Vokal. In their work with Vokal, the duo explores the dynamics between architecture, social movements, and property markets within the contemporary city, and they believe that cities should be shaped by the people who inhabit them. Communication and storytelling are also important parts of Matti and Ella’s work with Vokal, as they use it to foster an understanding of the built environment and reveal the underlying forces driving urban development.

Helsinki-based Matti is an Aalto University alumni and has also studied at ETH Zurich in Switzerland. His interests lie primarily in repairing and caring for the built environment and using what is already there instead of new construction. He tells us:

“What if we already have all the buildings we need in this world, and we just need to redistribute them and use them differently? Sometimes new construction can be more destructive than helpful, displacing people and the existing functions from important places.”

Ella is also an Aalto University alumni and has additional studies at École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville in France. She focuses on the forces behind our built environment and the dynamics between real estate, local residence, and architecture. She tells us:

“To a big part, the architecture profession consists of drawing and sketching, or solving technical issues, which is quite distanced from the lived experience of the people who reside in the buildings or use them. This discrepancy has led me to find new approaches to architecture. We are interested in the complex stories of buildings, from their history and the social life embedded in them to the complex journeys of construction materials from the earth’s crust to the building site. I’m interested in the opinions of people who have nothing to do with the building industry because everyone uses cities and buildings, not just architects.”

The role of locals and small communities in New York

Ella and Matti applied to the architecture residency to research participatory urbanism in climate adaptation, community-based organizations, and their role in the urban planning of New York City. About their time in New York so far, they tell us: 

“When we first came here, we knew our research might be challenging to do since it all depends on making those connections with the locals. And any community-based project is hard to complete in just one month. But we’ve met so many people and made so many connections. We’ve gotten the opportunity to get involved with different organizations and events, and we’ve spent some time volunteering and putting our labor into local communities, and in that way, gaining valuable knowledge and insight. Everyone has been very welcoming, and it’s inspiring how open people are to sharing their knowledge.”

Matti and Ella also explain why New York is particularly fascinating for their research about participatory urbanism in climate adaptation:

“In addition to New York having a deeply rooted history with social movements and activism, there is also this recent history of climate change and climate adaptation, with Hurricane Sandy happening in 2012. After New Yorkers experienced this sort of climate crisis firsthand, it led to a mindset shift regarding the urgency of climate adaptation. Living in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the city of New York is now trying to prepare and adapt for climate change with large infrastructure plans that sometimes collide with the wishes of the small communities.”

Ella adds:

“The small communities have also taken a very active role in these matters, trying to find their own, more small-scale solutions to climate change and climate adaptation, and we are very interested in exploring these soft infrastructural solutions more. This perspective is not only interesting here in New York, but one can also apply this knowledge to Finland: how can we join forces with each other to take care of the built environment?”

Architectural differences between Finland and New York

Speaking of the differences between Finland and New York, Matti and Ella also add that they see a difference, especially in the social aspect of architecture here compared to Finland. Matti says:

“The government in Finland takes more social responsibility for people, creating safety and security through programs and structural solutions, while people in New York often need to build these safety nets on their own by creating their own communities. In a way, it’s inspiring to see how quickly people can form these social connections when the need is there.”

Continuing on New York and inspiration, both Matti and Ella agree that something very inspiring about New York is how fast an idea can be made into a completed project here. An example is the one-day-long exhibition and workshop, “Reclaim the Triangle”, held in the Cooper Triangle Park in front of the Cooper Union’s Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture to conclude their residency and project. The purpose was to share insights from their residency period on community-based practices in New York City’s climate adaptation. Participants were invited to engage in a Climate Game, where they got to envision how they would reshape and occupy their surroundings.

On the question of how it’s been to live together in the Sugar Hill residency apartment, they both agree that it’s been intense but fun:

“We have this one month to really focus on our project, and we are together all the time in this shared space, so the lines between working and taking time off can get blurry sometimes. We try to do things that don’t have anything to do with our projects too, but somehow we always end up getting ideas for work and doing things that in some way have to do with architecture.”

What is next for Matti and Ella?

After the residency, the Vokal team continues their work regarding community-based organizations and climate adaptation. They are writing a publication of their residency findings to be shared in Finland next year.  They are also developing the workshop they started at the Cooper Triangle as an ongoing climate game that teaches and gathers information regarding community-driven climate actions.

Matti and Ella have also received funding for a project gathering memories and immaterial values of a neighborhood in East-Helsinki. Together with the locals, they aim to document the lived experience and values that are not necessarily visible to outsiders before the area is transformed in an urban renewal. In addition, the duo will also continue to pursue the participatory side of their practice. They tell us, their aim is to conduct participatory design workshops with locals in architectural design of their own as well as offer this as a product for other designers and architects to apply to their design trajectory.

To conclude their experience as Architects-in-Residency in New York, Matti and Ella says:

“The residency has been a fantastic opportunity to spend time in New York and connect with the locals. We focused much of our work in Harlem, where our apartment is located, and grew attached to the neighborhood. Harlem has an impressive history and vibrant community to this day. We got to know local residents and organizations and found our go-to shops and restaurants, constantly being surprised by how welcoming everyone is. We must return to New York at some point. Perhaps once the publication is ready.”