Images Timothy Soar / Adjaye Associates
There’s a fresh breeze blowing through Oslo these days, bringing a rash of innovative building and renovation projects that are putting the city on the architectural map
Oslo might not be your first thought as a leading centre of architecture and design, but this could be about to change. The Norwegian capital is undergoing a massive facelift with a slew of projects in the works. “We want to expand cultural projects in Oslo and we want to do it in a spectacular way,” says Gro Balas, the director of cultural affairs for the city.
At the heart of Oslo’s redevelopment is the new National Opera House, set to open in April 2008. Although it’s not quite finished, you can already admire the exterior. Unlike many public buildings, which aim to be as big and brash as possible, it tries to fit in with its environment. It’s low and wide with vast platforms sloping up from the ground so that visitors can walk around and on top of the building, from where they can admire the calm waters of the Oslo fjord. A platform has also been built on the water, giving the impression that the construction is afloat on the water.
This is a world away from the traditional up-thrusting architecture of high-rise towers. “We wanted to reflect the values of our society,” explains Tarald Lundevall, the architect heading the project for Snøhetta, a relatively unknown Norwegian firm that has nevertheless designed the Alexandria Library and the forthcoming Cultural Center at New York’s World Trade Center memorial site. “In Scandinavia, monuments are laid back, more discreet and more low key. The idea of easy, free access to public places is very important. So with this building, we wanted to express a vast horizontality and allow people to walk on it, go to the top and see the fjord unroll like a magic carpet in front of them.”
The locals seem to be falling in love with the place already: at a recent open day, 15,000 people came when 2,000 were expected. “It was really heartwarming to see people taking to the building and exploring it,” says an excited Lundevall.
Bjørvika, the area surrounding the new opera house, is undergoing a general redevelopment push that will dramatically change the face of Oslo’s waterfront with, among other things, the container harbour making way for housing projects.
To the west of Bjørvika, Rådhusplassen (City Hall Square) is another focal point.
A new arts centre by the US firm Rex will house the city library and a museum of contemporary art. But there’s already a must-see site for the architecture buff here, in the shape of the Nobel Peace Center.
The museum, which opened in 2005, is dedicated to the Nobel Peace Prize and its laureates – the prestigious award is handed out by the Oslo-based Norwegian Nobel Committee every year. Set in a former train station near Aker Brygge, Oslo’s refurbished docklands, the NOK 65m (€8.5m) museum was designed by the leading British architect David Adjaye.
From the outside, the creamy yellow building still has its original late 19th-century facade, but inside Adjaye and his team have created a thoroughly modern space. At the entrance, visitors are greeted by a hollow, elongated cube perforated with dozens of red and green circles of different sizes. If you put your ear next to the circles, you will hear people talking in their own language about what peace means for them. “Adjaye and his collaborators have been very good at the room-in-room concept, using colours, textures and the space to make an impact on people,” explains the Nobel Peace Center director Bente Erichsen.
Oslo has also been keen to refurbish its Functionalist heritage. The Bislett sports stadium, which was falling into disrepair, has undergone a face-lift, while the Ekeberg restaurant, which looks like it could feature in a Hercule Poirot mystery, has recently reopened and is a very popular destination. Towering next door to the Nobel Peace Center stands another good example of Functionalist architecture, the Oslo city hall or Rådhuset. Love it or hate it, the two gigantic, red-brick towers are a gleaming example of the style.
Away from Aker Brygge and Bjørvika, more projects are to come. A cultural centre is soon to open in an old brewery in the trendy Grünerløkka district and, in two to three years’ time, Oslo will have a ‘shard of glass’ rising on the side of Holmenkollen hill where the new ski jump will be built. Ski jumping is a national obsession in Norway and the city is honouring this national sport with brand new facilities for the upcoming world championships.
Oslo, it seems, is fast catching up as one of Europe’s top architectural hotspots.
Need to know
* Where to shop
Nordic design lovers should make a beeline for House of Oslo (26 Ruseløkkveien), a four-floor department store packed with independent interior furnishing boutiques. Try also the nearby Norway Designs and Tannum (both on 28 Stortingsgaten), also for interiors. Further afield, rising stars showcase their work at Norway Says (15 Thorvald Meyers Gate), such as the sleek Ugo couch or the I Am Boo glass carafe. A few doors down is the tiny Medmer boutique (19 Thorvald Meyers Gate) selling design accessories and furniture.
* Where to eat
Ekeberg Restauranten (15 Kongsveien. Tel. +47 2324 2300) is a beautiful Functionalist building from the 1920s that offers panoramic views over the city – and the food is good too. On the other side of the town is Bølgen & Moi (26 Løvenskiolds Gate, tel. +47 2411 5353), a fun and airy brasserie.
* Where to drink
Café Arcimboldo at Kunstnernes Hus (17 Wergelandsveien) is set in a grand 1930s building where Oslo’s see-and-be-seen crowd gathers. There is an art gallery upstairs.
* Where to sleep
Oslo lacks design hotels, but this is set to change with the arrival, in early 2008, of the First Hotel Grims Grenka (5 Kongensgate, tel. +47 2310 7200, www.grimsgrenka.no, rooms from NOK 2150/€280), billed as Norway’s first five-star design hotel.
FR » L’architecture à Oslo
La capitale norvégienne se dessine un tout nouveau visage, avec une pléthore de projets en chantier. Au cœur de ce renouvellement, l’Opéra National, dont l’ouverture est programmée en avril 2008. Contrairement à de trop nombreux bâtiments publics, il tente de s’intégrer à l’environnement. Le bâtiment est bas et étendu, entouré de vastes plateformes surgissant du sol, permettant au visiteur de se promener autour du bâtiment et d’en atteindre le sommet, afin d’admirer la vue du fjord d’Oslo. ‘En Scandinavie, les monuments sont en retrait, discrets et à plus petite échelle. Le concept d’un accès simple et libre aux lieux publics est primordial’, nous dit Tarald Lundevall, l’architecte en chef de Snøhetta, un bureau norvégien relativement peu connu, qui a également dessiné la bibliothèque d’Alexandrie.
Tout le quartier qui entoure le nouvel opéra, connu sous le nom de Bjørvika, connaît une pression immobilière qui va totalement bouleverser l’aspect du front de mer à Oslo. Rådhusplassen (la place de l’hôtel de ville) en est un autre point central. Le Centre Nobel de la Paix, qui a ouvert ses portes en 2005, est dédié au Prix Nobel de la Paix et à ses lauréats. Situé à l’emplacement d’une ancienne gare ferroviaire près du pont d’Akker, le musée a été dessiné par le plus en vue des architectes britanniques, David Adjaye.
Oslo a aussi pris soin de réhabiliter son héritage fonctionnaliste. Le stade sportif Bislett, le restaurant Ekeberg ou encore l’hôtel de ville (Rådhuset) en sont des exemples appréciés. Enfin, dans quelques années, Oslo disposera aussi d’un incroyable tremplin de saut en ski, du côté de la colline d’Holmenkollen, prêt à accueillir le championnat du monde.
NL » Architectuur in Oslo
De Noorse hoofdstad ondergaat dankzij een resem prestigieuze projecten een aanzienlijke facelift. Centraal in de stadsvernieuwing staat de nieuwe Nationale Opera, die in april 2008 zijn deuren opent. In tegenstelling tot de meeste publieke gebouwen, probeert het harmonieus op te gaan in zijn omgeving. Het is laag en breed met grote, oplopende terrassen, zodat mensen rond en op het gebouw kunnen wandelen, om van het zicht op de Oslofjord te genieten.
“In Scandinavië zijn monumenten relaxed, discreet en bescheiden. Het idee van een vlotte, gratis toegang tot publieke plaatsen is heel belangrijk”, aldus Tarald Lundevall, de architect die het project leidt voor Snøhetta, een relatief onbekend Noorse bedrijf, dat ook de Alexandriabibliotheek ontwierp.
Ook de hele wijk rond de nieuwe opera, Bjørvika, wordt gerenoveerd, waardoor de zeedijk van Oslo een volledig nieuw uitzicht krijgt.
Rådhusplassen (de grote markt) is nog zo’n renovatieproject. Het Nobel Peace Center, dat in 2005 werd geopend, is gewijd aan de Nobelprijs voor de vrede en zijn laureaten. Het museum is gehuisvest in een voormalig treinstation nabij Aker Brygge en werd ontworpen door toonaangevend Brits architect David Adjaye.
Oslo renoveert ook zijn functionalistische erfgoed. Het Bislett sportstadion, het Ekeberg restaurant en het stadhuis van Oslo (Rådhuset) zijn enkele populaire voorbeelden. Binnen enkele jaren krijgt Oslo bovendien een indrukwekkende nieuwe skischans tegen de Holmenkollenheuvel, klaar voor de wereldkampioenschappen.
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