Every summer in the coastal town of Fjällbacka, in Sweden, my mother bathes in the sea early in the morning; a daily ritual of calm immersion with only water, wooden bath-huts and rounded granite boulders as a backdrop, a family tradition with roots in the town's history. But the seasons transform Fjällbacka from a thriving tourist resort in the summer to a deserted ghost town with just 1000 inhabitants in the winter - the perfect crime novel scenario for local best-seller Camilla Läckberg.
The project uses childhood summer memories of bathing on the Swedish coast as a starting point to explore what lies beneath the surface of this old fishing village that over the years became a tourist-dependent summer resort.
By delving into the memories of residents and returning summer guests alike, a mosaic of particular visions of the town of Fjällbacka is being captured, allowing its layers, character and legacy to be valued and ultimately preserved and enhanced through the project. The project investigates both the narrative and the bold topography of Fjällbacka to reach a proposal that mediates between the deeply set contrasts of the town – winter/summer; tourist/local; past/present.
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