As a young man, Trevor Harris (b. 1949) dreamt of a career in theatre. After an interview for the drama school he met someone who took him to listen to a fierce crit at the local architecture school. ”Screw the theatre, this is life” Harris thought when he realised that architecture was the stage of real life.

In the beginning of the 1970s, Harris, whilst undertaking an internship in Finland he met Hennu Kjisik (b. 1948) when both acted as competition assistants to the very successful group of architects known as Katras. When they started doing competitions on their own they immediately got a prize on their first try. Kjisik then spent the early 1980s in Africa but after that, in 1985, the office was officially established. After having largely concentrated on urban design the office now covers the whole field of architecture and the growing office now also has two younger partners, Henna Iinsalo and Hannu Louna.

Urban life

Our practice has 30 years of experience of urban design and planning. We are regarded as pioneers in the field but we still continually look for new ways of thinking as well as recreating existing models and solutions while aiming at continuing the discussions on what the roles of the different actors in the field will be in the future. Our vision is sustainable, green, and sociable.

Cure and Care

We want to promote healing and improved everyday life when we plan hospitals, and other buildings for cure and care. In our design decisions, we always consider the wellbeing of both the human being and the natural environment.

Inspiring learning environments

Day care centres and schools are the springboards for tuning a child’s curiosity about the world around them. So the design of a school or a day care centre is not just about solving the puzzle presented by the room schedule. We are interested in the users, their identities and needs. Logic meets humanity. We are keen to dive into the scale of the children, we want to design spaces for the future.

International cooperation

The office has had activities in more than twenty countries outside Europe. We have had commissions from United Nations’ organisations and international development banks, as well as bilateral development partners.

Afrikan kehityspankki
ARA – Asumisen rahoitus- ja kehittämiskeskus
Asuntosäätiö
Autismi- ja Asperger-liitto
Bouwcollege Utrecht
Carea Oy
DOMUSS Real Estate Development
Eesti TV ja Radio
Espoon kaupunki
Fira Group Oy
HUS-Kiinteistöt Oy
Helsingin ja Uudenmaan sairaanhoitopiiri
Helsingin kaupunki
Huittisten kaupunki
Hämeenlinnan kaupunki
Jyväskylän Matkakeskus Oy
Jyväskylän kaupunki
Järvenpään kaupunki
Kanta-Hämeen sairaanhoitopiiri
Kehitysvammaliitto
Kotkan kaupunki
Kristiinankaupungin kaupunki
Kuopion kaupunki
Lahden kaupunki
Lappeenrannan kaupunki
Lieksan kaupunki
Loviisan kaupunki
Länsimetro Oy
Maailmanpankki
Napa-Koli Oy
Nurmijärven kunta
Oulun kaupunki
Pirkanmaan sairaanhoitopiiri
Port de Bruxelles
Rakennusliike Evälahti Uusimaa Oy
Seinäjoen kaupunki
Sipoon kunta
Sivakka-yhtymä Oy
Skanska Oy
Sponda Oy
Suomen Ulkoministeriö
Suomenlinnan hoitokunta
Tampereen kaupunki
Turun kaupunki
Tuusulan kunta
Plancenter Ltd.
UNESCO
Uudenkaupungin kaupunki
Vantaan kaupunki
YIT Rakennus Oy
Ylöjärven kaupunki
Ympäristöministeriö
yksityiset asiakkaat
Ääneseudun kehitys Oy