Conservation and creative transformation in Aarhus

Kjellander Sjöberg’s Johan Pitura was one of the invited speakers at the ‘Conservation and Creative Transformation’ conference in Aarhus on 18th March 2025.

The need for expertise regarding conservation and transformation is one of the most crucial topics for the construction industry right now. For several years, the organisation Building Green has held conferences on sustainable development – which have become key places to meet up, discuss challenges, and learn from each other.

This time, the aim was to get a solid understanding of why and when adaptive reuse makes sense, and how transformation can contribute to social regeneration. The conference will offer inspiration for repurposing old buildings while ensuring both quality and financial viability.

The construction industry is in a period of substantial change, where the existing building stock plays a central role in the necessary shift. We can no longer afford to demolish buildings and replace them every time they don’t meet our requirements or needs.

Instead, we must focus on making the most of the square footage we already have. This requires us to get better at investigating and realising the opportunities and potential within existing buildings, and at finding creative solutions to adapt them for future needs.

Conservation, renovation, revitalisation, and reuse are strategies that can breathe new life into existing buildings.

Swedish Architects Declare Climate & Biodiversity Emergency

Kjellander Sjöberg, as part of the Architects Declare initiative, will host the first networking event in 2025 in Malmö. On Tuesday, 4th March from 12-1 pm, the new series of monthly lunch meetings will kick off. These sessions, held simultaneously in Malmö, Stockholm and Göteborg, will take place every first Tuesday of each month for all participant of Architects Declare to discuss the 12 commitments of call to action, two points at a time.

Architects Declare is a network of architectural practices committed to addressing the climate and biodiversity emergency. The initiative was launched in the UK in the spring of 2019 and has now spread to more than 28 countries around the world. Swedish Architects Declare has been signed by over 300 Swedish architectural practices.

Shop Talk 12: Roles in sustainable urban development

Transition and systemic change – what does it mean for the industry?

The urban development sector is undergoing a transformation and is on the verge of a systemic shift. A likely scenario is that the amount of new construction will decrease dramatically, with a renewed focus on the existing built environment, on the transformation and maintenance of what already exists, ranging from neighbourhoods to urban blocks, buildings, and interior adaptations. At the same time, we must meet societal needs for versatile spaces – for community, care, education, work, production, leisure, health, services, and homes.

What does this transition mean for us? How will our professional roles as urban planners, architects, engineers, developers, contractors, and administrators change? How will it affect work processes, skills, continuing education, and business models? What new roles are needed?

This Shop Talk is part of an ongoing discussion series about the transition towards a circular and sustainable society.

Guests:
Patrik Lundberg, Skanska Fastigheter
Jesper Wallgren, Finch
Carin Daal, Stena Fastigheter
Sofia Lagerblad, Stena Fastigheter
Andreas Eggertsen, Malmö City Council
Kristoffer Nilsson, Malmö City Council
Johan Holmqvist, IVL Swedish Environmental Institute
Erik Larssen, Stadsverkstad

Time and place:
5 December 2024, 8:00 – 9:00
Engelbrektsgatan 7
211 33 Malmö

Symposium: When work creates a city!

Kjellander Sjöberg has been invited to take part in a symposium on transformation of industrial areas, taking place at the end of the 25th anniversary of the Industrial Heritage Trail from November 6th to 8th, 2024 in the former salt warehouse of the Hansa coking plant in Dortmund, Ruhr Region of Germany.

KS Malmö Director Johan Pitura will give a keynote on reimagining of industrial heritage, presenting transformation of Gjuteriet for Varvsstaden, and join a panel discussion with invited international experts from Germany, Netherlands and Italy.

The symposium is a cooperation event between the Regional Association Ruhr (RVR), Baukultur NRW, the Foundation for the Preservation of Industrial Monuments and Historical Culture and the European Route of Industrial Heritage (ERIH). It is supported by the Ministry of Regional Identity, Local Government, Building and Digitalization of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Time and place:
6th – 8th November 2024
Hansa coking plant
Emscherallee 11
44369 Dortmund (Germany)

Architecture Matters Pittsburgh & New York

Kjellander Sjöberg joining a delegation trip to the USA from October 7-11, offering public workshops and panel discussions with leading experts from Sweden and the USA to explore how architecture and urban design can enhance experiences, promote well-being, and contribute to the green transition. The discussions will also delve into the potential of sustainable timber construction and showcase successful built examples from Sweden.

The trip, titled “Architecture Matters,” is organized by the STHLMNYC platforming collaboration with the Swedish Institute, Architects Sweden, in conjunction with the Architecture Week in Pittsburgh and Archtober, New York City’s annual architecture and design festival.

In Pittsburgh, the focus will be on “challenges beyond design,” exploring how architecture can drive meaningful change. In New York, the discussions will center around how architecture can help push boundaries and drive innovation forward. There will also be a focus on wood as a renewable material and explore its potential as a design asset.

KS at Building Green Hamburg

ACT NOW! Everyone is talking about the urgent need for a change, to reorganise the building sector. There is no time to lose. We are facing an acute climate crisis for which the construction industry bears a large part of the responsibility. We have the solutions and the knowledge of what needs to be done, but how do we get from talking to doing?

Featuring the revitalisation of Kockum’s formerly industrial area in Malmö and the example of Gjuteriet, Stefan Sjöberg will present the process of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through minimising resource consumption and impact on the climate caused by urban transformation and construction processes. How focusing on sustainable strategies and common goals early in the process is essential for the necessary transition as well as for the built result – architecture. The lecture, titled: Reimagning industrial heritage, will take place on 19 June at 11:15 on the main stage.

Time and place:
19 – 20 June 2024
Fischauktionshalle
Große Elbstraße 9
Hamburg

Think Tank 025: Envisioning better communities

What does the best of urban design and the future of towns & cities mean to us?

Scandinavian urban practice is currently at a high – flourishing both at home and abroad. Recent years have seen a hype around the development of our Nordic cities in relation to urban design, masterplanning, neighbourhood communities, the public good and sustainability. With an increasing demand for this way of thinking more widely – what is it about this approach to urbanism that is growing in influence and gaining international recognition?

We welcome some of the leaders in urban thinking and practice who are driving innovative approaches to the nature and quality of urban places, regenerating our built environments today and visioning the cities of the future. We are happy to host a panel with a broad perspective, bringing together Swedish and international experience.

Think Tank 024: Rosengård – a neighbourhood for all

Local initiatives, communities, learning and culture

This edition of the KS Think Tank is a part of the Malmö in the Making initiative taking place during September 2023.

How do we make a neighbourhood for everyone? Focusing on the Rosengård district in Malmö, welcome to an open conversation about opportunities for local initiatives, better communities, learning, culture and entrepreneurship.

What obstacles are there in the physical environment that prevent kickstarting initiatives which bring people closer together and strengthen the local community, intensifying activities in shared meeting places? Where all ages are welcome and can find their place? Where children and young people feel seen and can contribute to their environment. How can we create places and opportunities for local entrepreneurship, small industries and workplaces? How can learning be accessible for all and evolve over time?

Which environment do we want and need?

Panel Guests:
Aisha Mossberg (Goto 10)
Laura Kieler (BRIQ)
Jenny Berg Nilson (Fryshuset)
Carin Daal (Stena Fastigheter)
Halimo Nuur Bashir (Rosengårds Folkets Hus)
Marcus Horning (Malmö City)

Time and place:
28th September – 5:00 pm
Design Built pavilion
Bennets väg 13
213 67 Malmö

KS lectures at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts

KS & Varvsstaden – transformation of industrial heritage

Featuring the revitalisation of Kockum’s formerly industrial area in Malmö and the example of Gjuteriet, Varvsstaden and Kjellander Sjöberg present their work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals through minimising resource consumption and impact on the climate caused by urban transformation and construction processes. How focusing on sustainable strategies and common goals early in the process is essential for the necessary transition as well as for the built result – architecture.

Focused on the intensive re-use of repurposed materials, the project demonstrates how existing buildings can be reimagined based on circular principles, introducing meeting places and urban activities. Preserving traces and memories of the place and historic forms of the building, a new neighbourhood is created where the present is tightly interwoven with the multifaceted story about the port’s rich maritime heritage.

Speakers:
Hanne Birk, Varvsstaden
Johan Pitura, Kjellander Sjöberg Architects

Time and place:
21st September 2023, 5:30 pm
Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts
Fredsgatan 12
Stockholm

Läs mer om föreläsningen
Läs mer om Gjuteriet

Think Tank 023: Gjuteriet: industrial heritage reimagined

Circular approach, re-use & innovation

It is time for the next Think Tank, focusing on re-use and transformation of the already built.

Based on the example of Gjuteriet in Varvsstaden in Malmö, we will discuss how to reach the Sustainable Development Goals through minimising resource consumption and impact on the climate caused by the construction sector.

How focusing on sustainable strategies and common goals early in the process is essential for the necessary transition as well as for the built result – architecture. We will explore re-use and the potential of seeing what is already built as an important asset; both from the material and resource perspective as well as from a wider cultural and historical public interest in the growing city.

The aspiration of the Think Tank is to shed light on the question through the diverse experiences of the invited guests – the Malmö City, the developer Varvsstaden, The Faculty of Engineering at the Lund University, the main tenant Oatly and Kjellander Sjöberg Architects.

Panel Guests:
Hanne Birk (Varvsstaden)
Finn Williams (Malmö City)
Ulla Janson (LTH)
Olof Martinsson (Malmö City)
Cia Eriksson (Oatly)

Time and place:
24 August 2023, 5:30 pm
Gjuteriet
Ångfärjekajen 8
211 19 Malmö

Event RSVP: rsvp@kjellandersjoberg.se

KS Shop 08: Industrial heritage reimagined

Photo exhibition about circular approach, presenting the recently completed transformation of Gjuteriet in Malmö for Varvsstaden, captured by the photographer Rasmus Hjortshøj.

Focused on the intensive re-use of repurposed materials, the project demonstrates how existing buildings can be reimagined based on circular principles. Formerly a ruin, the distinctive building has been given a vibrant new life as an active and social new urban place telling a multifaceted story about the port’s rich maritime heritage.

Kjellander Sjöberg began with what was already there: the imposing steel structure, the brick walls, the frail and broken collage-like character of the building we found – all these preserved stories and narratives that have accumulated over time.

‘The way the new building elements hang from the existing loadbearing structure perfectly demonstrates how retrofitting or transforming existing buildings into new spaces can be done out of respect for the qualities already available. This approach also means that the aesthetic qualities of the existing brick and steel structures and window frames are retained and become important for both the spaces and the representation of the spaces,’ says the photographer Rasmus Hjortshøj.

KS Shop 07: The Tactile and Poetic

We welcome the artist Anna Hillbom to the KS Shop.
Displaying a series of sculptures and sketches in the shopfront, we are thrilled to invite everyone to KS’s latest exhibition in central Malmö, a part of the public realm.

Using tactile and poetic means, Anna Hillbom creates a link between the archaic and the experiential, the haptic and the truly human. By replicating the primitive forms, and through an intricate responsive process, both fragility and heaviness arise – means of expression close to the very essence of architecture itself. Through clear materiality using plaster, wood, clay and brass, the inherent qualities of materials are emphasized, which may determine the outcome. Possible poetry arises in forms that speak of the importance of the familiar, the ordinary.

Vernissage

8th December 2022, 17:30 – 20:00
Engelbrektsgatan 7
211 33 Malmö

KS to present urban strategies for climate change in Toronto

KS has been invited to participate in the ’International Architectural Roundtable’ on 30th November in Toronto, Canada. Titled ‘Designing for a Lower Carbon City and Society’, the discussion will focus on how architects and urban planners could lead the way forward toward a more sustainable, inspiring and resilient cities and communities. To combat climate change will require dramatic shifts in how we live, how we get around, and how we build. Denser, more walkable cities can help us achieve environmental and social goals. But getting there needs political capital and a strong design vision for the physical environment. How are we planning and designing for denser cities with higher quality of life? How are architects and planners balancing the needs for resilient and sustainable structures with creating accessible and inspirational urban spaces?

Stefan Sjöberg will present KS’s expertise and methods for designing coherent, inclusive urban environments and neighbourhoods with a distinct character and identity. The presentation will feature the Meridian Water project in London, an emerging masterplan based on the 15-minute city principles for the London Borough of Enfield. The event will conclude with a joint panel discussion.

’International Architectural Roundtable’ is a part of ‘The Buildings Show’ organized by Buildings Canada, an annual three-day event with prominent, expert-led seminars and thought-provoking panel discussion about design, architecture, construction and property management.

Panel guests

Stefan Sjöberg, Founding Partner, Kjellander Sjöberg
Alex Bozikovic, Architecture Critic, The Globe and Mail
Michael Eliason, Founder, Larch Lab
Veronica Madonna, Principal Architect, Studio VMA, Assistant Professor, RAIC Centre for Architecture at Athabasca University

Time and place

30th November
8:00- 10:00 AM (GMT-5)
Metro Toronto Convention Centre, South
Toronto, Kanada

Architecture for climate emergency

Kjellander Sjöberg will host the Architects Declare networking meeting in Malmö on 27th September. The point of departure for the debate is the critical impact using raw materials has on our climate, and will feature three built projects, each based on their specific site conditions as a means to minimise the use of resources in a different way – Psychiatric Clinic in Borås by White, Våtmarksparken in Västerås by Topia and KS’s transformation of Gjuteriet in Malmö.

Architects Declare is a network of architectural practices committed to addressing the climate and biodiversity emergency. The initiative was launched in the UK in the spring of 2019 and has now spread to more than 28 countries around the world. Swedish Architects Declare was introduces in the autumn of 2019 and has been signed by over 300 Swedish architectural practices.

The networking event takes place simultaneously in Malmö, Gothenburg and Stockholm with the option to participate online.

Speakers:
Susanna von Eyben, White
Jenny Elgstrand, Topia
Johan Pitura, Kjellander Sjöberg

Time and place:
27th September 17:00
Kjellander Sjöberg
Engelbrektsgatan 7
211 33 Malmö

The event will be held in Swedish with the possibility to join online.
The registration closes on 25th September.

Timber and sustainable construction at the Architecture Days in Paris

As part of the ‘Architecture Days’ organised for the design season ‘Swedish Secrets’, KS will participate at the ‘Afterwork for professionals and architecture enthusiasts’ on 16th September at the Institut Suédois in Paris. Using examples by four invited Swedish architecture practices, the event will highlight and explore processes behind designing sustainable projects on various scales, from large metropolitan areas to small villages.

Ola Kjellander will present the KS methodology and tools, featuring the Bergsvåg residential scheme in Norra Djurgårdssaden in Stockholm and the transformation of Gjuteriet in Malmö, concentrating on timber, adaptive reuse and sustainable construction.

Participants: Kjellander Sjöberg, Liljewall arkitekter, Murman arkitekter and White arkitekter.

The event is organised by Architects Sweden and SI Paris.

Time and place:
16th september 18:00-20:00
Institut Suédois
11 rue Payenne
F-75003 Paris
France

The event will be held in English and is open to everyone.

Photo: Luca Lomazzi / voyez-vous

Swedish Secrets at the Institut Suédois in Paris

Kjellander Sjöberg has been invited to participate in the ‘Architecture Days’ discussion series taking place at the Institut Suédois in Paris on 15th and 16th September, organised as a part of the design season ‘Swedish Secrets’ by Architects Sweden. During the two days, Swedish and French architects will present and discuss sustainable approaches for urban and rural settings with a particular focus on the future use of timber in the construction industry.

Introducing the practice and featuring the transformation of Gjuteriet in Malmö and the Meridian Water masterplan in London, KS will give insight into their process and methodology for designing inclusive sustainable cities and urban places.

Running between 2nd September and 2nd October, ‘Swedish Secrets’ is a part of the ‘Swedish Design Movement’, an initiative to promote Swedish architecture, design and fashion to support the transition towards a more sustainable society.

Time and place:
15th September
Institut Suédois
11 rue Payenne
F-75003 Paris
France

Think Tank 022: Reflective practice & process

Shaping inclusive environments

How do we shape future design processes of our shared (and) physical living environment?

Reflective and responsive architectural practice needs to address current challenges and explore new territories.

In a changing social and planetary environment, what is the architect’s role?

In the midst of major transformation with blurred boundaries, hybrid combinations, and multiple stakeholders; what new types of collaborations are critical?

For this Think Tank, we have invited prominent architects based in Paris to take us through some fundamental aspects of their workshops; their processes, culture and methods.

Their thinking.

Through highly inspiring examples and references, we promote a panel discussion primarily on principles and possible paths towards a healthier, more sustainable, adaptive and inclusive future.

We would like to investigate common grounds as well as distinctively individual features that make a diverse and meaningful contribution to urban places and to the discourse.

This is a session to encourage an exchange of ideas, perspectives and experiences.
Welcome!

The event will be hosted by Architects Sweden and Institut Suédois with Kjellander Sjöberg.

Panel:
Studio Muoto (FR)
Septembre Architecture (FR)
Nicolas Dorval-Bory (FR)
Plan Común (FR)

Time and place:
15th September 2022, 19:30
Institut Suédois
11 rue Payenne
F-75003 Paris
France

The event will be in English and is open for everyone.

Think Tank 021: Proximity

Nearness, scale & community

How do we establish a sense of community and belonging in the urban context? Can local identity and a sense of kinship have a positive impact on how we use public space? Having the ‘Groupings’ exhibition as the point of departure, the Think Tank 021 will explore the topic of ‘Proximity’ through nearness, scale and community. Is the ‘we experience’ based on geographical closeness or is it a community founded on shared culture and values?

Proximity is the experience of being close. Proximity gives opportunities to create relationships, exchange expertise, and share resources. It provides a sense of community and belonging, helping us towards a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable future.

Together with a highly qualified and knowledgeable panel, consisting of Finn Williams, the City Architect of Malmö, and outstanding Swedish and UK architecture practices Mae Architects, MARELD, IF_DO, Mole Architects, We Made That and Fisher Cheng, we will investigate proximity on different scales such as district, urban park, neighbourhood, institution, block, workplace and home, bringing examples from Sweden and the UK.

Arranged by Kjellander Sjöberg.

Panel guests:
Finn Williams (UK + SWE)
IF_DO (UK)
Fisher Cheng (UK)
Mae Architects (UK)
MARELD (SWE)
Mole Architects (UK)
We Made That (UK)

Time and place:
21th June, 5PM BST
Digital event, Zoom Webinar ID: 815 1485 8984

The event will be in English and is open for everyone.

Image: Henley Halebrown / Kjellander Sjöberg / 6a architects / DK-CM / JCLA / Plan A