Groupings exhibition at the Southern Sweden Design Days 2022

We are opening our Work Shop in Malmö between 19 – 22 May, presenting the ’Groupings’ exhibition as a part of the Southern Sweden Design Days 2022. The exhibition displays precedents by invited Swedish and UK practices: Mae Architects, Mareld Landskap, IF_DO, Mole Architects, We Made That and Fisher Cheng.

The theme for this year’s Southern Sweden Design Days is ‘Proximity’. KS’s exhibition highlights how do we experience urban settings at various scales. Could local affiliation and identity have a positive impact on how we use the public realm? Is the ‘we experience’ based on geographical proximity or is it a community founded on shared culture and values? The notions of ’group’ and ’groupings’ are examined on different scales such as neighbourhood, district, block, institution, urban park, workplace and home.

Southern Sweden Design Days is an international annual design festival in Malmö, focusing on sustainability, collaboration, development and innovation. For four days, a platform is created showcasing a full range of design disciplines through seminars, workshops, exhibitions and networking events.

Opening hours:
Thursday 19 May, 13:00 – 17:00
Friday 20 May, 13:00 – 17:00
Saturday 21 May, 12:00 – 16:00
Sunday 22 May, 12:00 – 16:00

Kjellander Sjöberg
Engelbrektsgatan 7
211 33 Malmö

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

Urban regeneration competition Sugar Factory

Kjellander Sjöberg, in an international team with KOGAA and Open Fabric, in the top 3 of the concluded second phase of the urban regeneration competition in the city of Slapanice in Czech Republic. It was organised by the council in two stages, seeking to revitalise a former sugar factory area, transforming it into a new social and cultural centre for the locals.

The point of departure for the proposal was the distinct industrial heritage of the site, its conditions and relationship to the surroundings as well as immediate needs of the local community. Through high-quality placemaking, gradual phasing and introducing public content and greenery to the site, the concept creates an attractive destination for the public with a wide range of services for the community that is both just and economically feasible.

Excerpt from the jury report:
‘The proposal is characterised by a very strong concept based on gradual phasing and, among other things, a participatory approach to its realisation. It can be seen as a creative concept utilising the existing industrial atmosphere of the area informed by community planning. […] The refurbishment of the silo building is well envisioned, thoroughly designed also from the structural perspective […]’

Strategies for the countryside

Stefan Sjöberg has been invited to present strategies for a vibrant, liveable countryside at the 2022 Swedish Land and Environment Court annual theme days in Stockholm on 4th May. Featuring the masterplan for Little Haldens in High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire as the point of departure, the lecture will provide insight into the work and creation of new, attractive communities in the countryside that are both sustainable and viable in the long term.

The Engineering Days take place 3-4 May with ‘Meeting Place in City and Countryside’ as the main theme.
The event is initiated by the Swedish Land and Environment Court.

The masterplan for Little Haldens was developed in a wider design team with Periscope, Mae and Useful Projects for Human Nature.

On urban regeneration and social dynamics at the Polytechnic University of Milan

How can we approach design and transformation of our cities to generate new social contexts while creating iconic and complex buildings? Ola Kjellander has been invited to give a lecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan on 28th April. Titled ’Urban renewal and social dynamics’, a series of KS’s projects employing a variety of urban planning strategies will be presented, giving examples of both Swedish and international projects.

The lecture is a part of the New European Bauhaus Festival, featuring renowned architects such as Karim Nader, Yves Moreau and Kazuyo Sejima.

The event is open to public and will be broadcasted online.
Watch the lecture here: https://politecnicomilano.webex.com/meet/matteo.motti

Time and place:
28th April, 16:30 – 17:15
Piacenza Campus
PoliMi, Via Scalabrini 113
Piacenza, Italy

Read the invitation here.

KS arranges a seminar about wood construction in Malmö

The construction industry in the Nordic countries has always been closely related to wood. How did we build before the modern construction techniques such as cross-laminated boards, glued laminated timber frames, steel brackets and CNC milling machines?

In collaboration with Tränätverk A, KS organizes a seminar to discuss fundamental questions associated with wood construction, such as assessing the quality of wood and various types of joinery informed by the terms and conditions of wood as a material. The invited guests are Sofie Campanello from Fabel Arkitektur and Jakob Nilsson from Gögalunds Såg & Hantverk.

Tränätverk A is a platform for architects and other specialists to bring up and discuss topics. By sharing inspiration, experiences and projects across different professions, the whole industry benefits and the development of wood construction can advance.

The seminar is free of charge and open to public.
RSVP to [email protected]

Time and place:
21st April, 17:30
Kjellander Sjöberg
Engelbrektsgatan 7, Malmö

Read the invitation here (in Swedish)

KS’s contribution to the future of the Stadion area

Kjellander Sjöberg, in collaboration with the City of Malmö, has developed a vision for the future of the Stadion area in central Malmö. The sports district, well established in the city since the 1950s, will be transformed into a prominent neighbourhood, focusing on sport, recreation, events and meetings. The vision will deliver student housing and accommodation for athletes as well as a main multi-purpose stadium, a mobility hub, an entrance square, offices and commercial facilities. KS has adopted the core ambitions of the City of Malmö to create a vibrant, safe urban environment for all.

The first of three stages was finished during the autumn 2021.
The second stage is currently ongoing, focusing on the multi-purpose stadium, mobility hub, concept homes and office.

Floor Plans catalogue

KS brings floor plans into the spotlight. The new ‘Floor Plans’ catalogue highlights layouts as an important tool and presents drawing examples from 30 projects of various types and scales. Asking questions about flexibility, context and inclusion, KS is approaching a design process focusing on meetings between people and social interaction. A layout can act as an instruction as well as a description. It is an attempt at order and a clear arrangement of exterior and interior spatial sequences, aspiring to provide conditions for a viable, sustainable, vibrant society for all.

‘Floor Plans’ is the latest catalogue in the KS series, comprising the previously published ‘Hand Sketches’, ‘Commoning Kits’ and ‘Kjellander Sjöberg 1998-2018’ publications.

Read the catalogue here.

What can we do right here, right now? (Hope from Wood blog article)

The Museum of Finnish Architecture has published a blog article written by Stefan Sjöberg, based on his lecture ‘Adaptive Use: How to use the already built as a resource’ given in November 2021 as a part of the Hope from Wood Discussion Series. The text stresses the importance of immediate action and attempts to address the climate crisis in the everyday activities. It offers reasoning regarding challenges and possibilities through highlighting essential principles for recycling and resource-conscious construction, presenting KS’s Gjuteriet transformation project as an example. Embracing the utilisation of the existing and striving to do as little as possible that may harm our planet, the article introduces a methodology that promotes projects that are fundamentally sustainable.

‘The choice of materials for any new construction must be based on what is available locally to minimise impact on the climate. This intrinsically defines a vocabulary and a tectonic language, a format and framework of specific conditions, rather than giving a total freedom for one’s vision. More ethics, less aesthetics.’

Hope from Wood Discussion Series was organised by the You Tell Me Collective in November 2021 as a part of the main Hope from Wood exhibition at the Museum of Finnish Architecture.

Read the article on the website of the Museum of Finnish Architecture
Read more about Hope from Wood

Innovation within the Circular Economy

KS has been invited to give a Pecha Kucha talk at the New London Architecture (NLA) in London. With circular economy in the building industry as its point of departure, the event seeks to highlight innovative and sustainable projects that can help London to transition into a zero-energy and zero-waste city.

Joining a panel of London based practices, Stefan Sjöberg will discuss circular economy strategies and present the Gjuteriet transformation project in Malmö, which minimises use of resources and reduces its impact on the climate by preserving building components, complementing them with recycled materials collected in the Varvsstaden material library.

NLA is the world’s leading centre for excellence for the built environment. It explores and spreads knowledge about London’s future opportunities and challenges through research, exhibitions, events and publications.

The event is free of charge and open for public.

Time and place:
2nd March 2022
18:00 – 20:00 (GMT)
New London Architecture
London