London studio Skene Catling de la Peña and not-for-profit organisation Factum Foundation are set to turn the Toppila silo designed by architects Aina and Alvar Aalto in Oulu, Finland, into the Aaltosiilo cultural space.
The studio and foundation recently purchased the silo, which was designed in 1931 for a cellulose plant in the Toppila district of Oulu, from the local city council.
They will now work together to turn the structure into the Aaltosiilo, while a research centre designed by Skene Catling de la Peña will be built alongside it.
Above: the silo was built in 1931. Photo is by the Finnish Heritage Agency. Top image: it is located close to Oulu in Finland. Photo is by Otto Lowe
The structure has sat empty since the plant closed in the mid-1980s, and after its own attempts to revitalise the structure, the council sold the silo to ensure its future. "Despite years of trying to fund and use the silo, the Oulu City Council decided to sell in the hope that someone would save the building," Factum Foundation's director of communications, media, content and digital Nicolas Béliard told Dezeen.
"There was concern it needed to be demolished," he added. "The experimental concrete structure from 1931 was considered too important to lose."

Factum Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to documenting cultural heritage, will now work with Skene Catling de la Peña to turn the silo into a cultural space.
"The aim will be to c...