The working methods of Jaana Partanen and Heikki Lamusuo are described in the latest issue of Arkkitehti magazine 4/2020 - Empathy.

It says in the article, that at the heart of Partanen and Lamusuo's work is always the human being, and they always try to identify with the experiencer before starting the design. They compare their working method to the work of method actors immersing themselves in the role they play. However, this approach is not always easy, and when designing Vetrea nursing homes, for example, the headwork has been hard.

"Vetrea's homes are for people who have become disabled in adulthood due to traffic accidents or neurological conditions. To start off the design process, we visited one of the homes. It was tough trying to imagine ourselves in the same situation. We pondered what it would be like to live in the home ourselves, what we would want to have there and what would be important to us", Partanen and Lamusuo tell in the article.

Personal experiences are also part of the design. About ten years ago, after Jaana's and Heikki’s then 2-year-old daughter became ill, they spent a lot of time in the hospital ward, and they understood the impact of space on emotions.

"At the time, though, we got to thinking what a horrible space the place was for distressed people and that we wished we could do something about it."

With this experience, plans were made for the renovation of KUH Kaari Hospital and laboratory sampling rooms.

Another plan based on empathy and personal experience is for the lake spa in Hotel & Spa Järvisydän. Jaana and Heikki like to move around a lot in nature, and they happened to end up at the Järvisydän tourist center at the end of their skating trip. They fell in love with the spirit of the place right away, and when the assignment came, their first thought was that the spa definitely needed to fit in with the environment. Based on this experience, a beautiful, probably the most ecological spa resort in Finland was created.

In addition to exhibition plans and public art, the article also highlights design expertise. Partanen & Lamusuo are compared to Aino and Alvar Aalto and their style of making it yourself, if you can't find a suitable ready-made product. Pa-La has designed furniture for numerous public spaces, and this sparked their own design brand palad.

At the end of the article, Jaana and Heikki say that "Everything we do is important to us. Whether it is for a big or small project, we always aim for the best." They also mention that Partanen & Lamusuo would never lend their name to a nuclear power plant or, seeing that they are long-practicing vegetarians, a slaughterhouse.

The original article in Arkkitehti magazine is available to its subscribers. It was written by Vuokko Viljakka.