Kaisa Siitonen- MA Interiors
FLOW
I am Kaisa, an MA Interiors and BA(Hons) Architecture ARB/RIBA Part 1 graduate based in Manchester. My design practice is centred on creating meaningful spaces that are welcoming, functional and thoughtfully connected to their surrounding context. My approach is rooted in user experience and functionality, with particular emphasis on how the built environment can positively contribute to wellbeing and strengthen connections between people and nature.
My Finnish background has shaped my appreciation for simplicity, functionality, natural materials and a considered relationship with the environment. I am particularly drawn to projects that encourage active engagement between people and the spaces they inhabit, where aesthetic qualities are balanced with practical purpose. Through my work, I aim to create thoughtful and inclusive environments that respond to their users and contribute positively to their everyday experiences.
FLOW reimagines the historic Mark Addy building on the banks of the River Irwell as an environmental education, wellbeing and community centre, where learning about the river is transformed into experience, participation and care. Its location is fundamental to the proposal, embedded within Manchester and Salford’s historic riverside infrastructure, the building creates a physical threshold between the urban environment and the often-overlooked ecosystem that flows alongside it.
The programme brings together an interactive exhibition, water laboratory, creative workshops and speakers’ forum with spaces for yoga and pilates, while wildlife walks, running groups and litter-picking activities extend engagement beyond the building and directly into the riverside environment. FLOW therefore becomes both a destination and a starting point for experiencing the River Irwell.
Materiality reinforces this relationship between history, people and nature. Existing brickwork preserves the building’s industrial character, while timber, terrazzo and recycled glass introduce tactile and natural qualities. FLOW explores how interior architecture can reconnect people with overlooked urban nature and transform environmental awareness into a sense of collective responsibility and care.
