Fjällbacka in The Times, 5th June 2010

Linking to an existing cultural and social network

A new Folkets Hus has the potential to link to the existing institutions of the town, including the archive, library, hotels and restaurants. Together, they act as a network suitable to meet the needs of a range of programmes from exhibitions to conferences.

Some of the new spaces proposed - such as the boathouses - could be rented out to generate income for the Folkets Hus and finance exhibitions and performances.

An architectural intervention to mediate between winter and summer

Folkets Hus - a timber enclosure relating to granite horizons

The proposed Folkets Hus - light plays a key role within the building, as does the granite stage, allowed to come through from the ground below and serving as an anchor in the seasons.

The relationship between granite and timber is constant but varying in character.

A window behind the stage brings the afternoon light and also the archipelago into the room throughout the year.

A window seat within the wall allows views of the morning light playing on the rock outside, through the board on board timber cladding. This cladding is a reinterpretation of the local vernacular, adapted to include a seat and glazing. Below, an image taken at Badholmen.

At night, light from within the building plays on the rock outside.

The following collages describe the relationship between granite and timber further. A window in the walled garden lines up with the new lookout on Kråkholmen island, bringing the archipelago into the space.

Folkets Hus - a collision of past elements

The proposal for Folkets Hus takes its size from the old footprint of Badis, carved into the granite, the old Folkets Hus and the church. The church becomes a clear precedent in terms of size, being the one space in Fjällbacka which at key moments accommodates the whole town.

A network of interventions to enhance local identity

Through the introduction of new landscaped routes, boathouses, lookouts, cemetery, stage and Folkets Hus, the landscape is framed and protected from other development. All the proposed elements are reinterpretations of local symbols rather than unfamiliar, new ideas, and embrace Fjällbacka's physical and cultural heritage.

The network of proposals seeks to "provide a new channel for local history and culture", a need highlighted by the locals during the November trip.

The dual lookouts and cemeteries serve to visually link the mountain of Kvarnberget to the island of Kråkholmen, extending the perceived public space to the sea and archipelago.

Timber and granite - proposal concept

The relationship between granite and timber was identified as a key theme early in the project explorations, and has become a vital part of the proposal.

The heritage of the stonecutters is reinforced through different granite strata - drystone walls, granite paving, cuts in the rock and monolithic boulders highlight the local skills of the area and the permanent quality of the landscape.

Light timber inserts with a stage-like quality sit delicately within this granite landscape, and provide inhabited warm spaces for the winter.

Badis is identified as the epitome of summer and tourism, and is replaced by a Folkets Hus, a year-round symbol of local identity.

A vertical journey through granite

A new stair is proposed to link the waterfront to the mountain of Kvarnberget. This granite stair, enclosed by an existing drystone wall, has a narrow, vertical quality reminiscent of the 'King's Cleft', Kungsklyftan, directly in line with the stair.

In the summer, this stair would provide a cool, shady transition between the sunny, bustling waterfront and the granite mountain; in the winter, a shelter from the cold, bitter wind.

Further steps carved into the mountain take the visitor through the mountain and up to the lookout on the highest point.

A new island cemetery, access across the ice

The proposed cemetery on Kråkholmen fits within a network of existing cemeteries and responds to a growing need outlined in the Council's Local Plan.

During very cold winters, the island is accessible by foot over the thick ice, and by boat the rest of the year.

Inauguration of the cemetery on the island of Stensholmen.

Two granite rocks, two cemeteries, two lookouts

The island of Kråkholmen's strong relation to Kvarnberget has the potential to be exploited through the proposal of a new cemetery and lookout on the island. These directly respond to the existing cemetery and proposed lookout on Kvarnberget.

Strengthening these dualities helps to frame the bold landscape and extend the perceived extent of the public realm to include the sea.

The lookouts take their inspiration from Badholmen's diving tower.

Proposing the beginnings of a public waterfront

Existing plan of the area (above) and a draft proposal for a new public landscape (below). Click to enlarge!

The proposal includes five new public boathouses that can be rented out or used for events, as part of the Folkets Hus.

A new route leads the ambler from the church, through the cemetery, over the granite rock (stopping briefly at two benches to take in the framed views, or at the lookout on the top), through the walled garden of the Folkets Hus, down a granite staircase and out to a floating platform, to be used as a stage, sunbathing platform, seating area or dock for larger boats. During cold winters, this route can continue over the ice to the island of Kråkholmen, where a lookout marks the highest point.

New workshops replace the old herring factory and keep with the industrial character of the dock, potentially being used by the coastguard, fishermen, postal service and other marine industries. A mediating open space can be shared by tourists and locals, workers and visitors - the presence of the marine industries guarantees life and movement year-round.

The old sewage treatment plant can become inhabited by the local fishermen and house showers and a sauna, to be shared with sailing tourists in the summer.

A stage to frame the landscape

The façade studies continue...

Snøhetta's pavilion in Eggum, Norway, built under an existing ruin in 2007 (below)

Eduardo Souto de Moura - suggestive spaces in stone

Portuguese architects Eduardo Souto de Moura and Alvaro Siza are being studied for inspiration - they successfully combine the character and quality of traditional materials (and in particular of stone) with contemporary ideas and modern living.

Public waterfronts - possibilities

The proposal seeks to recover the lost edge between granite and water. The collage above suggests a new treatment of this boundary.


But there are plenty of possibilities for the waterfront:

The Bregenz Festival (above) is an annual event - a temporary floating stage is built on Lake Constance to showcase operas, plays and concerts during a month every summer, attracting thousands of spectators.


The Forum bathing area in Barcelona uses floating structures to enclose areas for swimming.

Embedding identity in a granite volume

Fjällbacka's memories and identity are embedded in granite - a large, flexible exhibition/celebration space is thus imagined as a monolithic granite volume. Its character changes as the seasonal light changes.

Timber inserts within this volume guarantee warm spaces in the cold, bitter winters.

Some areas are open to the views of the archipelago, others are enclosed to create dramatic contrasts. A new route draws the visitor towards the building through a sheltered, walled garden - this garden looks up to the towering mountain, encouraging the visitor to inhabit the rock and climb to the top.

A new network of lookouts

Childhood memories of exploring unfamiliar islands brought a realisation: don't we always want to climb to the highest point, get the best view, understand the character of the island we stand on and the landscape that surrounds us?

Several lookouts already exist in the archipelago, like those of Väderöarna and Dyngön - these are prominent physical references that attract plenty of visitors. Local artist Peter Engberg's 'Nödhamn' (above) is humorous, but serves to illustrate their powerful quality.

A renewed network of lookouts - utkikar - is thus proposed to frame the bold landscape and establish visual markers within the vast view of granite islands. The drawing above suggests two lookouts linking Kråkholmen island to the site.

Folkets Hus - imagining a new façade

The elements of the façade - street level stage, vertical access block and main hall - are being tested and explored through tentative collages.

Understanding the rock

The rock has the potential to be landscaped and considered as a whole, but its character and zones need to be understood first. An open space and two clefts/lines can be identified, leading towards Badis. Could these lines inform public routes within the rock? Could the open spaces accommodate performance areas or benches to take in the view? Could the lines be continued into the water?

Bohus-granite: cutting, shaping, carving

'Kullgrens Enka' quarry on Bohus-Malmön island, photograph from 1929

Granite steps in Lysekil, photograph taken in the 1880s

Could this inform a landscape of rooms or shelters within the rock?