54 | Issue 115 | August 2018
Scan Magazine | Culture Feature | The Sami Cultural Centre Sajos
The contemporary Sámi Cultural Centre Sajos certainly stands out, and not only
for its striking architectural design. Sajos provides fascinating information about
the Sámi as Finland’s indigenous people, and the largest events venue in northern
Lapland is also an attractive meeting venue with state-of-the-art technology.
By Malin Norman | Photos: The Sámi Cultural Centre Sajos
Sajos, located in Inari, on the southern
bank of river Juutua in the northern part
of Finnish Lapland, is the centre of cul-
ture and administration for the Sámi in
Finland, Here, visitors can take a journey
into the living culture of Europe’s only in-
digenous people.
The building’s purpose is to create bet-
ter conditions for the Sámi in Finland,
and for them to be able to preserve and
develop their language, culture and busi-
ness activities, as well as cultural self-
government. The building houses the
Sámi Parliament (Sámediggi), which is
the highest political organ for the Sámi
in Finland, and other Sámi organisations.“At our centre in Sajos, you can learn
all about the Sámi people and culture,
and about the Sámi Parliament and
how it works,” says marketing manager
Katariina Guttorm.Contemporary architectural design
Completed in 2012, the remarkable re-
inforced concrete building definitely be-
longs in the modern world, with wood
elements both on the exterior and in-
terior from local trees such as spruce,A versatile cultural centre in Sápmi
birch and pine, all of which express Sámi
culture. Sajos was the winning proposal
of a competition. Both architectural con-
cept and interiors are by HALO architects
from Oulu — a young team inspired by
Scandinavian architects and design icons
such as Alvar Aalto and Eero Saarinen.The word Sajos comes from the Inari
Sámi language and means ‘a place
where people stay for a while’. Fittingly,
Sajos is a sustainable construction, with
low energy consumption. The building’s
shape is inspired by a reindeer’s hide and
its form also takes inspiration from Sámi
handicrafts and reindeer herding, one of
the traditional livelihoods.Eight organisations work in the building,
including the Sámi archives, a library,
and the Sámi educational institute’s
classrooms and offices. It also includes