Issue 01· volume 12 16 Monday JULY 2012
HELLO
HELSINKI!
Welcome fellow EASAians!! It seems like everyone has finally arrived. Some of us got here yesterday during the day while others joined the party late last night. Everyone seems to have settled down by now, going around and exploring Helsinki. It was quite a long journey to get here. Some travelled by boat, others by plane, and some also by car. However, irrespective of the hectic trip, we all managed to get here. Apart from this sad weather, Helsinki seems like an appealing and attractive city. The EASA site is massive this year, the organizers did a great job in dividing the spaces up and managing to make Suvilahti a habitable space for more than 400 people from all over Europe. We officially congratulate you for the great job so far and thank you for having us here. Now let’s make our stay here the best 2 weeks of 2012.
GENERAL INFO
WALKING TOURS Even though it was pouring this morning, a lot of the participants still embarked on the walking tours around Helsinki. These tours are a great way to introduce yourself to a small percentage of the participants from other countries. They’re a good conversation starter. Well basically my feet hurt from all the walking but it was worth the pain after personally experiencing the interior of the dug-out church. And we all managed to explore a little bit more of Helsinki. Don’t forget that we all got travel cards, so make use of them! Just don’t lose it as there are no extra ones. And let’s all just hope this rain stops so the “sun” can peep.
Showers have hot water, the toilets all work and flush, and the sleeping situation is a decent one. Seems like a good combo to me. So let’s all work to try and keep it this way. Respect your neighbours and the people sleeping close to you. Don’t litter and throw the stuff you don’t need in the correct bins. Keep the toilets clean for others who might use them after you. Try not to make too much noise when going to sleep at night, as others might already be sleeping and the same goes for the morning. Try to keep it quiet when you wake up for people who might still need sleep after a night of hard partying (and this is especially for a particular Spanish guy). Remember that no smoking is allowed anywhere inside and keep your drinks within the bar area. If we all follow these small rules, our stay here would be a much more pleasant one.
FIRST
PARTY
It, seems like the marathon has started. It looks like everyone managed to find the way to the bar, again, this year. Last night’s “gathering” was a bit quiet at first, as a lot of people had not arrived yet, and let’s admit it; we all need those 2 drinks to fuel most part of our early conversations. As time passed however, more people arrived, the voices got louder and the place got smaller. Well, all in all it was a fairly fun night last night and we all hope the rest of the nights here will be of the same calibre. Just a small reminder NOT TO CRUSH THE BEER CANS – they need to be recycled to get the 15c deposit back. Tonight: the opening party. So get your dance shoes on people, I got a feeling it is going to last all night long.
PIGFEST U=UTOPIA how about the architectural rappings of Tuomas Toivonen? the crowd was jumpin’ jumpin’.
You know people are hungry when they’re ready to stand for over half an hour in Finnish rain for a piece of swine. We cannot complain however: the food was delicious! The vegetables were fresh and the pork was to die for. One thing though, as from now on remember to BRING YOUR OWN plates and cutlery to the next meal
WORKSHOPS Wow, so many amazing workshops! It’s going to be hard to choose. The workshop fair can be a crazy place. Everybody rushing to sign up to the same workshop. So it’s worth having a list of 3 workshops that you would be happy with. When you get to the fair, talk to the tutors and decide which is best for you. If there is a big line of people, it might be better to go for another one. Remember you can only sign up ONCE but there will be a round TWO where workshops with free places will be filled. Here is a quick re-cap of what’s on offer to help you decide. Artrack Smart Polish and German guys who want to make observations of wasteland spaces around Helsinki and take ACTION. First you must have a deep understanding of the potential of these spaces. Bodylab Friendly Argentinian girls who are happy to be here and want to make some exploratory studies of how the human body interacts with space using all of the senses. You will experience your environment in a new way. Branding-Ink Hardcore screen printing workshop with loco spanish guys and an austrian girl. You will be making more than t-shirt prints. How big can it go? Definitely one for graphic designers and talented artists. Burn! It seems that above all else, fire is the archenemy of architecture. So how can they turn the destructive power of fire into something constructive? Prepare to smell like diesel. Scale (Cloud 2) After some very beautiful moments in EASA011, these Serbian guys are taking it to the next level with floating structures and helium. Even their appearance at the presentation came through the airwaves. Demolition What happens when a structure starts to collapse? How long will it take? Can it be a designed experience? These super-cool Danish guys are going to make something big and watch it fall down. DIY-Concrete A professional skatepark designer and landscape architect want you to help them to mould and form a massive concrete bowl of fun. Looking for 50/50 rough girls and ready guys. Driftwood These Finnish guys won the Urban furniture competition to design five benches on the dockside. Working with Siberian Larch and concrete, the results will be enjoyed by 300,000 visitors a year for many years,
EASA-Documentary For budding film-makers, this is a unique opportunity to learn how to make a professional production from start to finish, using top of the range equipment and with the guidance of a forward thinking Englishman. EASA.fm Everybody tune in to 93.6FM where you can listen to some cool tunes, news and interviews. Every workshop will get a radio on thursday. Join to start your career in the media. EASA-Kitchen Like cooking? Like eating? Want to find out where your food comes from? You might even get to catch your dinner in the sea with a Finnish Fisherman. Possibly with sexy results. He said SEX! EASA.TV You can be the star of your own TV show! Even make the advertisements for EASA products. What about a soap opera? Or game-show? Every few nights we like to sit down together and watch the TV. Gathering-Wastelands These guys are from a design practice in Scotland called Pidgin Perfect. They want to ask people on the street about their fetish for wastelands and get busy with ruin-porn models. Illusion This bunch of mischievous magicians want to try and trick you into seeing things. Using traditional smoke and mirrors techniques as well as photography, photoshop and 1:1 scale models. Inipi Build a sauna! Well actually it is a native american ceremonial sweat lodge. But you will get to hang out with Thomas Yellow Hair and connect with this ancient tradition of purification. Kinetic-Graffiti If you want to do a massive street art project that involves a complex technique of animated paintings, this is your ticket. It is quite experimental but you will be part of something never done before. Kingdom-of-Waste Paint the town red, blue, yellow and purple, any colour you like but it has to glow in the dark under UV light. This workshop is going to make for some very exciting night-time activity. Full Moon Party! Korkeasaari Apparently the world is going to end next week because some Finnish god is very angry but he will leave the island of EASA until last because we are good drinking buddies. So pretend like it’s the last day on earth.
Kuki-Wonderland Check-in to your body. You are going to explore the limits of your mobility and have some fun getting into a lot of different positions and situations with kooky girls who like to film themselves in action. The-Outdoor-Reading-Rroom. Like bricks? Want to sit outside and read a book without getting wet or blinded by the sun. So design yourself a little reading room and find out the many different ways bricks go together. Poetry-of-Wastelands If you pay close attention, you can interpret the wastelands. They have a beautiful message that can only be unlocked by listening closely and capturing the magic on film. Rational-Irrational These easa veterans are trying to interpret the wasteland with reason and logic using a measuring device, built on site. The outcome is totally unpredictable but you can be sure that your brain will be challenged and your desire to produce an object fulfilled. Refuge Bringing the humanity back to architecture, these finnish girls want to make a positive impact in their community working with the Roma people in Helsinki. The work will be focused on making improvements to a local community centre. Smoking-is-Good-for-You Despite all the propaganda, this workshop has nothing do with smoking cigarettes. Unless you think blowing smoke on a tuna sandwich will make it taste better. You will be building a smokehouse for the preservation of local food. Stage If you came here to build, you came to the right place. Get to grips with power saws and hand tools to create a music stage for flow festival. It’s going to be a big ball of fun but the sphere won’t be inflated until after easa. Strange-Nature Experiment with folding aluminium sheets, creating a modular system that can be repeated to create large organic shapes. If you like origami or have a particular interest in detailing connections, thiw workshop is for you. Swingland There is something thrilling about a swing. So if you want to let yourself go and bring out your inner child, start thinking about where you are going to swing. And apparently they are going to experiment with other kinds of ‘swinging’ too. Three-Little-Pigs Slow down. Sometimes life rushes past and we don’t get a chance to reflect on our surroundings. These guys want to talk philosophy with you and tackle big questions
Trash-Art If you can find something that hasn’t been recycled already, turn it into art. Maybe there are some things in the welcome pack that could find a new life as a collage or sculpture. The results will be exhibited in a contemporary art museum!
Zerobase Who wants to work in an office 9-5? What if the whole concept of an office was changed. What kind of environment best suits the information age. Challenge your preconceptions about sitting at a desk all day and get creative.
ONE TREEsome Quite simply they are going to build a treehouse. It might be a sauna perched over the water or it could be a clubhouse for illicit activities. If you have a head for heights and climbing trees, this might be for you. Umbrella=Sontikka We are the voice of EASA and try to relay everything that happens here in a daily newspaper. If you have journalistic tendencies and want to explore the EASA-site engaging with your fellow participants, join us. We want people with a good sense of humour who are not afraid to ask questions. If you can’t join us, please do contribute some of your thoughts. We want everyone to use the #EASA012 #WASTELANDS tags, comment on our facebook, email us or just drop by our desk near the infopoint and tell us what you want to see in the next issue. Urban-Acupuncture No presentation - possibly cancelled Visioning-Helsinki These guys want you to think like an architect, you have to use your brain of course but also your visual intelligence. What makes Helsinki such a smart place when it comes to design? Report your findings to the head of Urbanism and Architecture in Scotland. Wastebikes “i got 99 problems but a BIKE ain’t one”. If you love cycling culture but wanted to create your own bike from scratch, now is your chance. Use a welder to create hybrid machines and then race eachother mad max style. Wasted-Light Since there is not much sun, we have gotten used to ‘shadebathing’ but when the sun eventually shines, it is going to be spectacular. What better way to enjoy the powerful rays of the sun than in the depth of darkness. Writing-is-Building If you like playing with words, typography, language and poetry maybe you should think about describing architecture instead of drawing it. You will encounter many architects who have used words in a clever way to make architecture. Zen and the Art of Blanket Forts . Did you ever create a world of imagination under the sheets? Yea, I bet you did. Well this time there are going to be many more people joining you to discuss their imagination under stretched fabric. Get comfortable.
DAY WORKSHOPS . In addition to the workshops above, you can also sign up for a one-day workshop. KONE-Uplifting-Landings Get a change of scene this WED/THURS/FRIDAY in an old Nokia cable-making factory. You will be asked to think about how people flow through buildings using lifts and elevators. How can these experiences be enhanced by subconscious observations? CultureTram Also on WED/THURS/FRIDAY this week you can experience tramlife and the potential for culture on public transport. Special guest Blathmhac O’Muiri who some of you might remember fondly from EASA Ireland will play the Uilean (Elbow) pipes as well as many other performers and musicians. Cramo-Optimised-Space On Wednesday from 3pm-6pm. 50 people will create new spaces using CRAMO modules. Document the journey and predict the future outcome of these modules over time. What is a CRAMO module? Come and find out. STX Open Innovation Evening On Monday 23.7. 17:00 - 21:00 we will be Working in groups of seven people discussing and creating concepts around some of the following themes: Experiences at sea: travel concepts/ Buoyant housing /workplace /Utopias /Space use/modifiability/Architecture of transition and mobility/Reuse of decommissioned cruise liners - 3 participants per country So pick your favourite three workshops and be prepared for tomorrow. If you get a chance, find the tutors and introduce yourself before the fair. 1 _________________________ 2 _________________________ 3 _________________________
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