Vanhа Satama

Brief information

Vanha Satama looks like a venue for fairs, seminars, and parties, but its foundation is two preserved warehouse buildings from the former Katajanokka harbor. In 1896, the first bonded warehouse appeared here: in such places, uncleared goods were stored and warrants were issued for them, that is, warehouse certificates. That is why the building is connected not with the ceremonial side of the city, but with its trade logistics.

The main turning point came not during construction, but during the 1984 reconstruction: the warehouses were not demolished, but adapted for new use. Because of this, the modern site reads as a repurposed port instrument. Events now take place inside, and a restaurant, gym, and auction house also operate there, but the very idea of large spaces is inherited from its warehouse past.

What to notice right away

It makes sense to look at Vanha Satama as a pair of warehouses rather than as one ordinary exhibition venue. The Selja and Poppeli buildings were built as twin warehouses on both sides of Laukkasaarenkatu; this arrangement explains why the space was connected with the movement of cargo, not only with storage. The Port Railway ran between the buildings from the Töölö depot to Katajanokka, carrying, among other things, spices and coffee. This detail changes the scale of perception: the gap between the buildings was a working line of the port. The reconstruction preserved the warehouses, so today's fairs and seminars occupy not a neutral shell, but former customs premises where the new function has been built into the old warehouse form.