VOKAL
PROJECT
CONTENTS
BOOK
MUISTOJEN MERI-RASTILA
GEOGRAPHY OF MEMORIES
        Geography of Memories is an art and research project where together with local residents we gathered memories and the intangible values embedded in the neighborhood of Meri-Rastila. As the area undergoes significant changes due to urban renewal, major buildings—from schools to the local mall—are being demolished to make way for new constructions.
        Through our approach, we aimed to inspire a new way of observing the built environment—not just through abstract maps and planners’ drawings, but through the personal significance places and spaces hold in people’s lives. The project invited us to engage with the history of map-making and reflect on the power that the lines drawn by architects carry. Even if the demolition driven by urban renewal could not be halted, we can preserve the memories embedded in the built environment and the silent knowledge held by the area’s residents.
        The project insights were gathered through participatory workshops, interviews, memory walks, as well as observation and archival research. The findings are gathered on this website in the form of documentation and an online version of the project publication. The project is funded by the Alfred Kordelin Foundation and the City of Helsinki.




EXHIBITION

        The results of the Geography of Memories project were exhibited in Culture Space Merirasti in August 2025. 
        The site specific exhibition adopted its form from the former chapel hall. On the wall of, in the place of the altarpiece, hung a memory map that compiled information about the memories of Meri-Rastila: past and present significant places for which locals have struggled. 
        The altar table was covered by fourteen stacks of A4-papers. The A4 represents the systems of standardization that guide our daily lives and aim to enact control over the human experience. The stacks of paper symbolized the myriad of surveys conducted of Meri-Rastila, and comprised the final publication of the project in the form of a deconstructed book. The publication aimes to showcase what surveys conducted of the social life of neighborhoods could look like.



        
MEMORY MAP

        The memory map compiles information about the memories of Meri-Rastila: past and present significant places for which locals have struggled.
       The blue images and texts depict memories. They tell of past events and reflections that have been collected from locals in interviews and workshops.
        The red shows the reality of the plans and urban renewal. The red images and texts tell of ongoing struggles. They remind us of Meri-Rastila’s uncertain future. The terrain has been marked with plots for future construction and buildings to be demolished to make way for them.


BOOK    
       The results of the project are compiled in this publication. The book features texts in Finnish by Vokal, an interview with the original planner of Meri-Rastila Vesa Jakkula, as well as texts comissioned from the resident movement Pro Meri-Rastila and Moona Tikka founder of Studio Field. 
        English translations of some of the texts are available on our Substack. Contents / Sisällysluettelo:

Esipuhe
Johdanto
Alkumyytti: Haastattelussa Meri-Rastilan kaavoittaja Vesa Jakkula
Kulta-aika: Asukaskahvila Fokka
Sankareiden aika: Meri-Rastilan rantametsä
Legendat: Sjökullan torppa ja Rastilan kartano
Taantumus: Kaupunkiuudistus
Renessanssi: Merirasti
Välitila: Ostari
Pro Meri-Rastilan vaikuttamistyö Meri-Rastilan puolesta
Moona Tikka: Mielipiteiden keräämisestä ymmärryksen lisäämiseen ​

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CONTACT    
VOKAL
vokal(@)vokal.fi

Ella Kaira
Architect (MSc) SAFA
ella.kaira(@)vokal.fi

Matti Jänkälä
Architect (MSc) SAFA
matti.jankala(@)vokal.fi
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