With just a few weeks to go before the official announcement of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid) if Helsinki or Eindhoven may wear the crown of World Design Capital 2012 - and while there’s still some lobbying to be done - during the Helsinki Design Week 09 the Fins were somewhat anticipating to the date by suggesting that the champagne is already ordered and just waiting to be cracked. Kaurismäki is never far away.
 
With its array of events such as the usual showroom and studio visits, workshops and exhibitions, from the Esplanade and its adjacent Boulevards to the Habitare Fair, the autumn city festival (4 –13 Sept) promised the right atmosphere for local dream-weavers and promoters of the concept ‘Helsinki, design capital’.

And frankly, with a strong design identity by labels such as Artek, Iittala, Nokia and Marimekko and with a three or four generation’s designer legacy from Alvar Aalto, Eero Saarinen, Eero Aernio, Ilkka Suppanen, Harri Koskinen, and the young ones such as Company (to name but a few), Helsinki merits to take over the title of world capital after Turin and Seoul, and leaves the Dutch city far behind in the end rush - in true Paavo Nurmi style. But first let’s wait and see what the South-Korean city will come up with next year. In the meantime we put our votes on Helsinki, a better city to get wasted on both design and champagne.