Sähkötalo (lit. ''Electricity Building'') ( sv, Elhuset) is the name of the building located in the

Kamppi Kamppi () is a neighbourhood in the centre of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. The name originally referred to a small area known as the "Kamppi field" (see below), but according to the current official designation, "Kamppi" encompasses a much l ...

district of central

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, which serves as the headquarters of

HELEN Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, ...

, the municipal energy company of the city of Helsinki. The building was designed by

Alvar Aalto Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto (; 3 February 1898 – 11 May 1976) was a Finnish architect and designer. His work includes architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware, as well as sculptures and paintings. He never regarded himself as an artist, see ...

. Construction started in March, 1970, and the building was ready for occupation on January 22, 1973. Since October 2007, the bottom floors of the building have been home to stores accessible from

Kamppi Center Kamppi Centre ( fi, Kampin keskus, sv, Kampens centrum) is a complex in the Kamppi district in the centre of Helsinki, Finland, designed by various architects, the main designer, however, being Juhani Pallasmaa. It is said to be Helsinki's new ...

by an underground pedestrian tunnel running underneath

Fredrikinkatu Fredrikinkatu ( sv, Fredriksgatan, Helsinki slang: ''Freda'') is a street in Helsinki, Finland that starts from Viiskulma in the district of Punavuori and continues north by the western side of Kamppi Center until it reaches Lutherinkatu and the ...

. The window frames of the building are lined with

neon light Neon lighting consists of brightly glowing, electrified glass tubes or bulbs that contain rarefied neon or other gases. Neon lights are a type of cold cathode gas-discharge light. A neon tube is a sealed glass tube with a metal electrode at ...

s that slowly change colour throughout the night.

References

Alvar Aalto buildings Buildings and structures in Helsinki Modernist architecture in Finland Kamppi Helen Oy Office buildings completed in 1973 {{Finland-struct-stub