The Annual Award of the Estonian Association of Interior Architects 2024
The Annual Award of the Cultural Endowment of Estonia in Architecture 2024
Architecture
Urmas Lõoke, Kristiina Arusoo, Riina Poopuu (Urmas Lõokese Arhitektuuribüroo)
Interior architecture
Gerly Vaikre, Pille Lausmäe-Lõoke (PLSAB)
Team
Mariel Tõld (PLSAB)
Structural desig
Silvia Ränd (EKK)
Conservators
H&M Restuudio, Eesti Kunstiakadeemia, Uderna Puit
Commissioned by
Riigi Kinnisvara
Construction
Oma Ehitaja
Net area
3240
Design
2012–2024
Completed
2024
Photos
Terje Ugandi
Location
Kiriku plats 1, Tallinn

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Estonia's representative building offers our state guests a welcoming yet representative journey through the story of the formation of our multifaceted culture and statehood, always viewed from the perspective of the present day. The building, with its rich and dignified history, has been treated with great respect. This has imposed several constraints, but it has also highlighted the skill of architects and builders in accommodating the needs of a modern, functional representative building within these narrow boundaries.
Gert Uiboaed, Adviser on Insignia at the Government Office

After 12 years of design and three years of construction, the Estonian Knighthood House has become a representative office for the Republic of Estonia. It is the building for receiving representatives of foreign countries, organising state receptions, conferences and gala dinners.

If initially the main building in Renaissance Revival style, completed in 1849, seemed to be the more exclusive and interesting part of the complex, then in the process, the focus shifted on the part located in Kohtu Street. The most important find was the ceiling painting on the ground floor that had been hidden for over 300 years, requiring changes in the layout, lighting and furnishing. Also, smaller findings such as the pillars of the State Hall or the marbling of the old stairwell had to be matched with the new design. Likewise, the solution for the assembly hall required discussions, with approvals needed from historians, archivists and restorers to re-install the coats of arms stored in the History Museum. As there were no originals, the drawings were completed on the basis of photographs.

The greatest challenge but interestingly the least noticeable part of the project and construction included HVAC. How to address acoustics, fire safety, security and accessibility so that they would remain unnoticed yet meet all the requirements without compromising the overall ambience? The aim was to avoid copying and reconstruction, all additions had to be visibly contemporary, including windows, doors, carpets, custom-made furniture, light fixtures. Nearly all toilets in the building are in new locations and markedly modern. The finishings reflect the original with materials such as limestone, oak parquet and cement tiles. Where possible, we tried to reuse and relocate the materials found in the building. Another interesting find was the grained wooden floor in the future press centre, now protected by a custom-designed wool carpet.

The colour scheme remained modest in warm grey hues allowing the historical details, contemporary additions and why not also the visitors of the building to stand out.

Text by: Pille Lausmäe
Estonian Architecture Awards 2024

Good things take time, and that’s the case in interior architecture as well. The official Estonian government building has been 12 years in the design, during which time cabinets, project managers and many other parties have changed. And yet the untiring work of interior architects Pille Lausmäe-Lõoke and Gerly Vaikre have taken the Knighthood House to an excellent finish. It can be said without exaggeration that we have a building that proudly represents our country and its values.

The Knighthood House has a long history. The Estonian Knighthood acquired the plot of land on Toompea Hill in 1652, yet the earlier buildings were destroyed in a great fire in 1684. The two-storey Baroque stone house on Kohtu Street was built in the first half of the 18th century. The Neo-Renaissance style addition along Kiriku Square, from 1848, became the symbol of the knighthood, it was designed by architects Georg Winterhalter and August Gabler. The house has had different tenants over the years – in the interwar era, it was home to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which the interiors were adapted for. After the Second World War to 1992, the building housed National Library, followed by the Estonian Art Museum exhibitions of early art. From 2009 to 2016, it was used by the Faculty of Fine Arts of the Estonian Academy of Arts.

Twelve years ago, work started to turn the ensemble into Estonia’s representative building. The goal is to host high-level foreign guests and organise events of national importance. The interior architecture competition in 2015 was won by the practice of Pille Lausmäe. The original goal was for the building to be completed by 2018 to celebrate the period when Estonia held the European Union’s rotating presidency in the second half of 2017. The pandemic, war in Ukraine and delay in the government decision postponed the start of the work, but it was finally completed in late 2024.

Estonia doesn’t have many examples of representative state architecture and that made the task more complicated – it’s a typology that is a relatively strange in our country. Inspiration was drawn from European examples and the final concept is based on harmonious marrying of the historical and modern layers. The existing elements are highlighted elegantly and the new additions don’t copy the earlier ones. New functions added include a press room, modern private offices, expanded accessibility, strict security requirements and up to date utility systems, designing the latter being a puzzle in its own right.

The interior architects had to redo the renovation project many times. This was due to various historical discoveries coming to light starting in early 2023: a painted marbling by the former main entrance, acanthus motifs, a solid board floor with painted pattern in the Landtag Hall, two pillars found inside the wall in the newer building and grand lights. The most significant find was a figural ceiling painting on canvas discovered between the first and second floor of the Baroque building – it likely dates back to the 18th century though its story is still largely unexplained today. We can see how every successive ruler tried to erase traces of the one before it, but the interior architects’ goal was to integrate these finds skilfully so that the various stratifications are equally highlighted. A total of about 300 architectural drawings were prepared for this purpose in the design process.

The historical finds will likely become the building’s most prestigious exhibits. They are supplemented by works by the artist Laurentsius commissioned under percent-for-art clause of public buildings. A total of 260 heraldic emblems on display in the Landtag Hall also returned to their home in restored form. The interior architects succeeded in elegantly and tactfully tying this complicated building together as a whole and give it new life, which embodies the historical and cultural value of the building.

Ruumipilt 2024