Plot twist for spruce veneer – from industrial material to visible surface

Vilma Kojola

Editor, Tulus

When the designers of the Habitare 2026 theme exhibition were looking for a material suitable for a large installation, their starting point was to achieve as much as possible with as little material as possible. They found the solution in UPM Plywood’s WISA^®-Parquet Veneer, a spruce veneer typically used as the backing veneer in three-layer parquet flooring. At Habitare, it takes on a new role as a visible surface in exhibition architecture.

Habitare 2026, a Finnish furniture, design and interior event, explores the theme Plot Twists and looks at interiors and design through changes in direction and unexpected solutions. The theme exhibition is designed by Minestrone Workshop, a Helsinki-based shared woodworking studio and design collective founded in 2024.

The story of Minestrone Workshop began on a pétanque court, where five interior architecture students from Aalto University were discussing where they could continue working with wood after graduation. The community has since grown into a collective of nine designers.

Photos: left, Henri Vogt / Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre; right, Justus Hirvi / Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre

Achieving more with less

Habitare gave Minestrone Workshop the theme and a floor area marked out with tape that the installation had to fit within. Beyond that, the designers had free rein. Gradually, the idea developed into a workshop environment that makes design processes, experimentation and works in progress visible.

“One of our key starting points was how we could create the installation using as little material as possible. We didn’t want to build something very material-intensive for just four days and then have the material end up as waste. That led us to the idea of veneer: could we use a small amount of material to create a large volume?” says Hemmo Honkonen, interior architect and one of the founders of Minestrone Workshop.

Minestrone Workshop wanted the veneer to be of Finnish origin. In addition to spruce, the designers also considered pine and birch.

“A larger surface can accommodate more pattern. Spruce makes the surface livelier. If it were smooth birch veneer, the surface would be more boring,” Honkonen says.

“Yes, this definitely tells more of a story,” adds Carlo Raymann, interior architect and another of Minestrone Workshop’s five founders.

Photo: Henri Vogt / Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre

Spruce veneer wins the designers over during a mill visit

Spruce veneer was relatively new to the Minestrone Workshop designers. They had used plenty of spruce plywood before, and spruce itself was familiar to them from instrument making and sculpture, among other applications.

The final material choice was confirmed during a visit to UPM Kalso mill, where the designers learned more about spruce veneer and how it is produced.

“Before the visit, we had questions about the knots in spruce veneer and how easily it might crack. It was good to be able to handle and test the material on-site and to see how veneer is produced, starting from the logs,” Honkonen says.

“When we were driving back to Helsinki, we agreed that this was it – we were going to lock in the choice,” Raymann says.

After the mill visit, the designers tested the spruce veneer in prototypes, exploring the supporting structure, how the veneer sheets would be attached, and how the veneer would bend and remain intact in a curved structure.

UPM Plywood’s WISA®-Parquet Veneer spruce veneer was selected for the installation, and UPM Kalso mill supplied 420 veneer sheets measuring 1,250 × 1,250 millimeters.

Photo: Henri Vogt / Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre

From an industrial component to a visible surface

WISA®-Parquet Veneer is a spruce backing veneer used in the structure of three-layer parquet flooring to help the parquet maintain its shape.

“The backing veneer in three-layer parquet flooring needs strength, consistent quality, controlled dimensional behavior in changing moisture conditions and good bonding properties,” says UPM Kalso Mill Director Mikko Miettinen.

In Minestrone Workshop’s installation, the same material takes on a completely different role. The knots and patterns of the rotary-cut spruce veneer become part of the visual expression of the surface.

According to Honkonen and Raymann, on a large surface, individual knots merge into a repeating rhythm that ties the individual veneer sheets together into a coherent whole.

“Spruce is a really underrated material. It is often seen as an affordable construction material, and of course it is that too, but high-quality spruce is a really good material. It has been used to make instruments and airplanes because it is both lightweight and rigid,” Honkonen adds.

“It has been interesting to see this open-minded approach, where a technical component is turned into an impressive spatial artwork. The wood products industry needs this kind of creativity and experimentation with new applications,” Miettinen says.

The material’s journey does not end at Habitare

From the very beginning of the design process, the designers considered what would happen to the material after the exhibition.

“One of the good things about the veneer sheets was that we could use standard-sized sheets, hang them in a frame and then return them for further use after the event,” Honkonen says.

After Habitare, the veneer sheets are intended to be returned to UPM Kalso mill.

“The veneer can be cut to the dimensions required by the parquet mill and supplied for further use,” Mill Director Miettinen says.

Photos: Henri Vogt / Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre

Spruce takes center stage

In the finished installation, the natural warmth of spruce veneer contrasts with the hard, angular form.

“The result is a mix of a spaceship and warm architecture,” Raymann says.

The Minestrone Workshop designers want to delight and surprise Habitare visitors. The installation combines contrasts, unexpected elements and humor. Using spruce veneer as a visible surface gives a familiar material a new role and highlights its potential in interior applications.

Raymann points out that perceptions of the aesthetics of different wood species change over time.

“Aesthetics evolve, and different types of wood have their time. Sometimes it’s birch, sometimes it’s oak, and sometimes it could be spruce. Maybe the time for knots is coming,” Raymann says.

At the Habitare theme exhibition, the knots and natural patterns of spruce veneer take center stage – at least for a while.

“It’s really nice to make something impressive out of spruce veneer. It deserves it,” Raymann says.

Habitare 2026 takes place at the Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre, September 2–6, 2026.

Photo: Henri Vogt / Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre

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