The Tikkurila Church and the Helsinki Olympic Stadium among the shortlisted works for the Mies van der Rohe Award

The Mies van der Rohe Foundation has announced the 40 shortlisted works that will compete for the 2022 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture. From the ten Finnish nominees the Helsinki Olympic Stadium refurbishment and extension by K2S Architects and NRT Architects as well as the Tikkurila Church and Housing project by OOPEAA made it to the list.

The shortlist features buildings from 18 countries across Europe. Austria, France and Spain have the most entries, five each. Finland is the best represented Nordic country. Norway and Denmark both only have one entry on the list and Sweden has none. The jury has told they focused on their decisions on architectural sustainability and the lifecycle of the projects.

The refurbished Helsinki Olympic Stadium has received a lot of praise after its completion. The refurbishment won the Finlandia Prize for Architecture 2020 and the new canopy won the Steel Structure of the Year 2019 Award. The refurbishment was also awarded last autumn with a silver medal by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the International Association for Sports and Leisure Facilities (IAKS). You can find more information on the project on the website of K2S through this link (opens in new tab).

OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture can also be proud of their success. They are the only Finnish office that has gotten several entries on the Mies van der Rohe Foundation’s shortlists. The Tikkurila church is their fifth project on the lists. Previously they have had the Kärsämäki and Kuokkala Churches, the Suvela Chapel and the Puukuokka housing block listed among the 40 best works. You can find more information on the Tikkurila Church on OOPEAA’s website through this link (opens in new tab).

The winner of the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award will be announced in April and the Award ceremony will take place in May. In addition to the main Prize of 60.000 € a Special Mention of 20.000 € will be awarded.

The shortlist can be found on the EU Mies Award’s website through this link (opens in a new tab). On the site, you can also search for nominees, finalists and winners of the Award since 1988.