Architect Pekka Pitkanen 1927 2018: Concrete Modernism in Finland

Professor Pekka Pitkanen (1927 - 2018) was one of the most significant Finnish architects of the post-war period. He is known as a master of concrete buildings and as a staunch supporter of modernist approach to architecture. He won numerous commissions by architectural competitions. The Chapel of the Holy Cross (1963 - 1967) in Turku is usually considered as Pitkanen's main work. From 1950's to 1980's Pitkanen built in Turku numerous residential and commercial buildings, often in co-operation with the building company Urakoitsijat Oy. Together with Ola Laiho and Ilpo Raunio, Pitkanen planned the extension of the Finnish Parliament (1972 - 1978). Late in his career Pitkanen focused on public buildings, the finish of the career was the Turku court building, completed in 1997. The book presents Pitkanen's architecture through his whole career, based on research of his archive, the presentations of the works in contemporary magazines as well as the memoir of Pitkanen.