Finnish architect to discuss sustainable architecture in lecture for K-State College of Architecture, Planning and Design

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Source: Gary Coates, 785-532-1105, gcoates@k-state.edu
News release prepared by: Diane Potts, 785-532-1090, potts@k-state.edu

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

FINNISH ARCHITECT TO DISCUSS SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE IN LECTURE FOR K-STATE COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE, PLANNING AND DESIGN

MANHATTAN -- Sustainable architecture will be the topic of the first lecture of the spring 2007 semester at Kansas State University's College of Architecture, Planning and Design.

Finnish architect Mikko Heikkinen will present the slide illustrated lecture "Shades of Green: Case Studies on Sustainability in Architecture" at 4 p.m. Monday, Feb. 5, in the Little Theatre at the K-State Student Union. The lecture is open to the public.

Heikkinen is the Regnier Distinguished Chair of Architecture at K-State's department of architecture. He will spend several periods in residence at K-State during the spring semester, teaching in the fifth-year studio of Gary Coates, professor of architecture. Coates' students are working on the design of a retreat center for a remote site on the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Chase County. The goal of the center is to help users reconnect with nature, self and human community.

Heikkinen received his master's in architecture at Helsinki University of Technology in 1975. Later that year, he and Markku Komonen founded Heikkinen – Komonen Architects. The firm's projects include the Finnish Science Museum "Heureka" near Helsinki, the Finnish Embassy in Washington, D.C., the European Film College in Denmark, the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden, Germany, and prefabricated homes for a Finnish manufacturer and schools in Guinea between 1994 and 1999.

Heikkinen has had teaching positions at Virginia Tech, Staedelschule in Frankfurt, Germany, and Kunstakademiets Arkitektskole in Copenhagen. He was the Ruth and Norman Moore Visiting Professor at Washington University in St. Louis in 2002. Heikkinen received the Finland Award in 1996, the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2001 and Heinrich Tessenow Gold Medal in 2003. He is an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects.

Attendance at the lecture can be submitted for continuing education credit by design professionals by contacting Diane Potts at 785-532-6415 or e-mail to potts@k-state.edu.

The Victor L. Regnier Chair in Architecture was established in 2003 by his children -- Victor A. Regnier, Robert D. Regnier and Catherine M. Regnier -- through the Victor and Helen Regnier Family Foundation, Mission. The purpose of the chair is to recruit and retain the highest quality faculty and to enrich the educational experience of students by engaging architects with national and international reputations to teach annually in the department of architecture. Victor A. Regnier is a 1971 K-State graduate with degrees in architecture and architectural engineering.