Yrjö Sotamaa
Encyclopedia
Yrjö Sotamaa, is a Finnish designer
. Sotamaa is Professor Emeritus of Design Innovation in the Aalto University School of Art and Design and President Emeritus of the University of Art and Design Helsinki (Taik). He served as the head of TAIK from 1986 until 2008. He earned his MA in Interior Architecture and Furniture Design from TAIK, where he studied with Kaj Franck
and Antti Nurmesniemi.
in the USA by the invitation of Victor J. Papanek and was a close collaborator of Papanek for several years. During his time in Purdue he also collaborated with Buckminster Fuller
. In 1972-73 he studied nomadic cultures and handicrafts in East Africa. Sotamaa entered the service of TAIK in 1975 as Head of Department of Interior Architecture and Furniture Design.
During his time as head of TAIK, Sotamaa had a visible role in the development of the Arabianranta
area of Helsinki where it is situated, under the notion of the Living Lab, first put forward by MIT Professor William Mitchell, in terms of a research methodology for sensing, prototyping, validating and refining complex solutions in multiple and evolving real life contexts.
Sotamaa has played a key role in the creation of the Finnish national design policy, the EU User Driven Innovation Policy and the reinforcement of the position of design in the Finnish Innovation System. He has also played an active role in renewing the Finnish university system and is the initiator of the Helsinki Innovation University project, named Aalto University
, which started operating on 1.1.2010.
Sotamaa has held a number of expert positions. He was Chairman of the Board of the Art and Design City Helsinki ADC Ltd (2000-2010) and a Member of the Round Table of Design in Finland (2000-2010). As Chairman of the Finnish Information Society Forum and as a Member of the Information Society Forum of the European Union (1995-99), he participated in research on the evolution of the information society and in the planning of future strategies. He was the Vice-Chairman for the National Committee preparing the new Governments Art and Artist Policy Programme for Finland. He has been Chairman of the Tapio Wirkkala
Rut Bryk Foundation TWRB. Sotamaa was Vice-President of the Finnish Council of University Rectors in 1997-2003. Sotamaa was elected in 2001 the first President of CUMULUS, the International Association of Universities and Colleges of Art, Design and Media (2001-2007). He was Chairman of the Foundation of the Finnish Institute in Japan during 1996-2009.
, UK. He is member of the Court of the Royal College of Art, UK, the Steering Group of the Danish Center for Design Research, the External Review Committee of Tsinghua University, PRC, the International Advisory Board of the Austrian Program for Arts-based Research PEEK (Austrian Science Foundation) and the Helsinki World Design Capital 2012 Delegation. Sotamaa has been invited by the Danish Government to be a member of Design 2020 expert group to create a vision for Denmark as a design nation.
He is currently member of the Boards of many culture organisations including the Asko Foundation and the Väinö Tanner
Foundation. He also serves on the Advisory Boards of the Finnish Cultural Institutes in Rome
and Madrid
. He is Founding Member of the Finnish-Swedish Academy of Industrial Design and Chairman of the Japan-Finland Design Association JFDA (Finland)
Sotamaa has been also actively involved in university policies and produced numerous publications and articles on university autonomy, academic quality systems and internationalizing university education.
The production of Sotamaa includes two major international exhibitions: Varde and Q - Designing the Quietness. Varde was produced by six major Nordic Design Universities with the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers. Over 300 students of the six schools were addressing the future challenges of the world and producing visions of the future through their works. The exhibition was first presented in the Royal College of Art
in London and toured around the world in 1994-1996 in Rome, Berlin, Budapest, Barcelona, Sapporo, Taipei, Seoul, Linz and Helsinki. Q -Designing the Quietness was a major event of the Feel Finland program in Japan in 2003 and was first presented in the Living Design Center Ozone in Tokyo and later in 2004 in Fiskars Design Village, Finland. Books on the themes of the exhibitions were published in 1994 and in 2004.
Sotamaa´s major publications include works on university autonomy, academic quality, art and design policy. The Economic Autonomy of the Finnish Universities (Yliopistojen taloudellinen autonomia, Finnish University Rectors Council, 2002) laid foundations on the expansion of the autonomy and the reform of Finnish Universities in 2008. The other university publications include: Quality in Focus (Laatu polttopisteessä, Finnish University Rectors Council, 2002). Sotamaa was chairperson of the expert groups writing both of the publications. The policy reports include Art is Opportunities (Ministry of Education, 2002), which was a proposal to governments Art and Artist policy. Sotamaa was vice chairperson of the expert group writing the proposal. The second policy work resulted to Design 2005!, Government Decision-in-Principle on Finnish Design Policy (Ministry of Education, 2000).
Sotamaa is author of the Kyoto Design Declaration, which was approved by CUMULUS Association in 2008, and in which the global community of 140 Art and Design institutions committed themselves to sustainable development. He has also published Ateneum Maskerad, Forms and Transformations of Finnish Design (University of Art and Design, 2001, chairman of the project).
Sotamaa is an active writer and has been columnist for the Finnish business daily newspapers Kauppalehti, Presso and Kauppalehti since 2004. He is member of the Editorial Boards of Asia Design Journal (Korea) and All Design Magazine (PRC).
. He is Honorary Chairman of the Finnish Institute in Japan and Honorary Fellow of the Aalto University School of Art and Design, the Finnish Association of Designers (ORNAMO) and Graafiset muotoilijat (GM), as well as of the Royal College of Art
in the UK. He is a Member of the Comite d´honneur of Ecole Supérieure d´Arts Graphiques et d´Architedcture Interieure-Design ESAG-Penninghen, France.
Sotamaa was awarded the Magnolia Award of Shanghai City in 2011, the Lifetime Achievement Award by CUMULUS Association in 2010, the MTV3 Finland Culture Prize in 1999, the Albert Gebhard Medal of the Graphic Designers Association, Finland in 2003, the Sign of Honor of the Latvian Academy of Arts in 2006, the Prix Met de Penninghen, Ecole Superiéure d´Arts Graphiques et d´Architecture Interieure-Design Esag-Penninghen in 2007, Medal of the Helsinki University of Technology in 2011. In 2002 he was a Nominee for the World Technology Award in Design. Sotamaa was awarded the Most Beautiful Book of the Year 2000 Prize and he is listed in the Who is Who in the World and International Who is Who of Professionals.
Sotamaa has been decorated with the Order of the Rising Sun
, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, Japan; the Golden Medal of the City of Helsinki, Finland; Commander, Order of the Lion of Finland
; Commandeur in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau, Netherlands; Knight, First Class of the Order of the White Rose
of Finland.
Interior design
Interior design describes a group of various yet related projects that involve turning an interior space into an effective setting for the range of human activities are to take place there. An interior designer is someone who conducts such projects...
. Sotamaa is Professor Emeritus of Design Innovation in the Aalto University School of Art and Design and President Emeritus of the University of Art and Design Helsinki (Taik). He served as the head of TAIK from 1986 until 2008. He earned his MA in Interior Architecture and Furniture Design from TAIK, where he studied with Kaj Franck
Kaj Franck
Kaj Franck was one of the leading figures of Finnish design, the teacher of several generations of professional designers in Finland, and an influential figure in design and applied arts between 1940-1980...
and Antti Nurmesniemi.
Career
In 1969-70 Sotamaa was a Visiting Professor at Purdue UniversityPurdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
in the USA by the invitation of Victor J. Papanek and was a close collaborator of Papanek for several years. During his time in Purdue he also collaborated with Buckminster Fuller
Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was an American systems theorist, author, designer, inventor, futurist and second president of Mensa International, the high IQ society....
. In 1972-73 he studied nomadic cultures and handicrafts in East Africa. Sotamaa entered the service of TAIK in 1975 as Head of Department of Interior Architecture and Furniture Design.
During his time as head of TAIK, Sotamaa had a visible role in the development of the Arabianranta
Arabianranta
Arabianranta or Arabiastranden is a fast growing residential part of Helsinki, Finland. It is bound by Vanhankaupunginlahti bay from east, and connects to neighboring boroughs of Vanhakaupunki in north, Hermanni in south and Toukola and Kumpula in west...
area of Helsinki where it is situated, under the notion of the Living Lab, first put forward by MIT Professor William Mitchell, in terms of a research methodology for sensing, prototyping, validating and refining complex solutions in multiple and evolving real life contexts.
Sotamaa has played a key role in the creation of the Finnish national design policy, the EU User Driven Innovation Policy and the reinforcement of the position of design in the Finnish Innovation System. He has also played an active role in renewing the Finnish university system and is the initiator of the Helsinki Innovation University project, named Aalto University
Aalto University
Aalto University is a Finnish university established on January 1, 2010, by the merger of the Helsinki University of Technology, the Helsinki School of Economics, and the University of Art and Design Helsinki....
, which started operating on 1.1.2010.
Sotamaa has held a number of expert positions. He was Chairman of the Board of the Art and Design City Helsinki ADC Ltd (2000-2010) and a Member of the Round Table of Design in Finland (2000-2010). As Chairman of the Finnish Information Society Forum and as a Member of the Information Society Forum of the European Union (1995-99), he participated in research on the evolution of the information society and in the planning of future strategies. He was the Vice-Chairman for the National Committee preparing the new Governments Art and Artist Policy Programme for Finland. He has been Chairman of the Tapio Wirkkala
Tapio Wirkkala
File:Wirkkala.jpgTapio Wirkkala was a Finnish designer and sculptor, a major figure of post-war design. His work ranges from plastic ketchup bottles and metalware to glass, ceramics and plywood in a range of styles. He designed the Finnish markka banknotes introduced in 1955...
Rut Bryk Foundation TWRB. Sotamaa was Vice-President of the Finnish Council of University Rectors in 1997-2003. Sotamaa was elected in 2001 the first President of CUMULUS, the International Association of Universities and Colleges of Art, Design and Media (2001-2007). He was Chairman of the Foundation of the Finnish Institute in Japan during 1996-2009.
Current Activities
Sotamaa is Executive Vice Director of the Sino-Finnish Centre at Tongji University and he serves as a scientific advisor to universities in Austria, Denmark, China and Korea. He is Professor (Tongji-Forever Chair) and Advisory Dean at College of Design and Innovation D&I in Tongji University, Shanghai, PRC and Visiting Professor at Nottingham Trent UniversityNottingham Trent University
Nottingham Trent University is a public teaching and research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as a new university in 1992 from the existing Trent Polytechnic , however it can trace its roots back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham Government School of Design...
, UK. He is member of the Court of the Royal College of Art, UK, the Steering Group of the Danish Center for Design Research, the External Review Committee of Tsinghua University, PRC, the International Advisory Board of the Austrian Program for Arts-based Research PEEK (Austrian Science Foundation) and the Helsinki World Design Capital 2012 Delegation. Sotamaa has been invited by the Danish Government to be a member of Design 2020 expert group to create a vision for Denmark as a design nation.
He is currently member of the Boards of many culture organisations including the Asko Foundation and the Väinö Tanner
Väinö Tanner
Väinö Tanner was a pioneer and leader in the cooperative movement in Finland, and Prime Minister of Finland from 1926 to 1927....
Foundation. He also serves on the Advisory Boards of the Finnish Cultural Institutes in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
. He is Founding Member of the Finnish-Swedish Academy of Industrial Design and Chairman of the Japan-Finland Design Association JFDA (Finland)
Production
An underlining theme of Sotamaa's activities has been related to forwarding sustainable development through design and international collaboration. The culmination of this work was the so-called Kyoto Design Declaration in 2008.Sotamaa has been also actively involved in university policies and produced numerous publications and articles on university autonomy, academic quality systems and internationalizing university education.
The production of Sotamaa includes two major international exhibitions: Varde and Q - Designing the Quietness. Varde was produced by six major Nordic Design Universities with the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers. Over 300 students of the six schools were addressing the future challenges of the world and producing visions of the future through their works. The exhibition was first presented in the Royal College of Art
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
in London and toured around the world in 1994-1996 in Rome, Berlin, Budapest, Barcelona, Sapporo, Taipei, Seoul, Linz and Helsinki. Q -Designing the Quietness was a major event of the Feel Finland program in Japan in 2003 and was first presented in the Living Design Center Ozone in Tokyo and later in 2004 in Fiskars Design Village, Finland. Books on the themes of the exhibitions were published in 1994 and in 2004.
Sotamaa´s major publications include works on university autonomy, academic quality, art and design policy. The Economic Autonomy of the Finnish Universities (Yliopistojen taloudellinen autonomia, Finnish University Rectors Council, 2002) laid foundations on the expansion of the autonomy and the reform of Finnish Universities in 2008. The other university publications include: Quality in Focus (Laatu polttopisteessä, Finnish University Rectors Council, 2002). Sotamaa was chairperson of the expert groups writing both of the publications. The policy reports include Art is Opportunities (Ministry of Education, 2002), which was a proposal to governments Art and Artist policy. Sotamaa was vice chairperson of the expert group writing the proposal. The second policy work resulted to Design 2005!, Government Decision-in-Principle on Finnish Design Policy (Ministry of Education, 2000).
Sotamaa is author of the Kyoto Design Declaration, which was approved by CUMULUS Association in 2008, and in which the global community of 140 Art and Design institutions committed themselves to sustainable development. He has also published Ateneum Maskerad, Forms and Transformations of Finnish Design (University of Art and Design, 2001, chairman of the project).
Sotamaa is an active writer and has been columnist for the Finnish business daily newspapers Kauppalehti, Presso and Kauppalehti since 2004. He is member of the Editorial Boards of Asia Design Journal (Korea) and All Design Magazine (PRC).
Organizer
Sotamaa has contributed to international collaboration in art and design as an initiator of the establishment of several of major organizations: CUMULUS Network (1990), CUMULUS, the International Association of Universities and Colleges of Art, Design and Media (2001), The Finnish Institute in Japan (1996), The Japan-Finland Design Association JFDA (2000), The Finnish-Swedish Academy of Industrial Design (2003), The Sino-Finnish Centre at Tongji University and the Aalto-Tongji Design Factory in Shanghai (2010).Awards
Sotamaa has been awarded Honorary Doctorate by the Estonian Academy of ArtsEstonian Academy of Arts
The Estonian Academy of Arts is the only public university in Estonia providing higher education in art, design, architecture, media, art history and conservation-restoration...
. He is Honorary Chairman of the Finnish Institute in Japan and Honorary Fellow of the Aalto University School of Art and Design, the Finnish Association of Designers (ORNAMO) and Graafiset muotoilijat (GM), as well as of the Royal College of Art
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
in the UK. He is a Member of the Comite d´honneur of Ecole Supérieure d´Arts Graphiques et d´Architedcture Interieure-Design ESAG-Penninghen, France.
Sotamaa was awarded the Magnolia Award of Shanghai City in 2011, the Lifetime Achievement Award by CUMULUS Association in 2010, the MTV3 Finland Culture Prize in 1999, the Albert Gebhard Medal of the Graphic Designers Association, Finland in 2003, the Sign of Honor of the Latvian Academy of Arts in 2006, the Prix Met de Penninghen, Ecole Superiéure d´Arts Graphiques et d´Architecture Interieure-Design Esag-Penninghen in 2007, Medal of the Helsinki University of Technology in 2011. In 2002 he was a Nominee for the World Technology Award in Design. Sotamaa was awarded the Most Beautiful Book of the Year 2000 Prize and he is listed in the Who is Who in the World and International Who is Who of Professionals.
Sotamaa has been decorated with the Order of the Rising Sun
Order of the Rising Sun
The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese Government, created on April 10, 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight from the rising sun...
, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, Japan; the Golden Medal of the City of Helsinki, Finland; Commander, Order of the Lion of Finland
Order of the Lion of Finland
There are three official orders in Finland: the Order of the Cross of Liberty, the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Order of the Lion of Finland . The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The orders are administered by boards consisting of a chancellor, a...
; Commandeur in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau, Netherlands; Knight, First Class of the Order of the White Rose
Order of the White Rose
The Order of the White Rose of Finland is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The orders are administered by boards consisting of a chancellor,...
of Finland.