Taru Nature House picked Estonia's wooden building of the year
Taru Nature House, designed by architects from the Kavakava architecture firm, has been named Estonia's Wooden Building of the Year.
According to jury chairman Lembit-Kaur Stöör, Taru (hive in Estonian and a play of the words tark and ruum, meaning smart space — ed.), located in Tallinn's Noblessner area, impressed with its cohesive design. The nearly zero-energy building is Estonia's largest public wooden building. Its architecture combines sustainable materials, large curved glued-laminated timber ceiling structures, a resulting sense of spaciousness and natural light. Taru will house the Estonian Museum of Natural History, the Environmental Board, the Estonian Environment Agency and several other government agencies.
"The building's overall composition, exterior and interior spaces, materials and structural design come together in harmony, creating something that is both emotionally engaging and intellectually stimulating," Stöör explained.
Henrik Välja, CEO of the Estonian Forest and Wood Industries Association (EMPL), which spearheads the competition, said the event's 24 years of consistent efforts have paid off. "We are approaching a point we dreamed of at the beginning of this journey but never truly dared to imagine we would reach," Välja said.
Erik Konze, the competition's organizer and EMPL's timber architecture consultant, added that he has spent years traveling across Europe on study trips to explore developments in leading architecture and timber construction.
"However, the entries in recent years' Wooden Building of the Year competitions confirm that we no longer need to look beyond Estonia to see world-class timber architecture," he said.
Competition is growing fiercer each year. Timber construction is becoming increasingly widespread, with the public sector continuing to lead the way.
"That is where the most interesting developments are taking place," Stöör said, adding that good architecture is essential for bringing communities together.
A total of 23 entries were submitted to the competition, organized for the 24th time by the Estonian Forest and Wood Industries Association. Entries were evaluated for their innovative, durable and creative uses of wood in structural elements as well as exterior and interior finishes.
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Editor: Merilin Leetna, Marcus Turovski
