MODERNA MUSEET AND ARKITEKTURMUSEET IN STOCKHOLM
Stockholm, Sweden

1991-1998

• Skeppsholmen Island used to be the headquarters of the Swedish navy, and, as such, it was a parallel city, autonomous, with all the resources necessary to carry out its mission: shipyards, barracks, munitions dumps, hospitals, churches, workshops, gymnasiums... Towards the end of the 19th century, the navy abandoned Skeppsholmen and its buildings became theaters, museums, schools, and so on. One such institution was the Moderna Museet. In 1990, in a quandary over whether or not to enlarge it, it was decided that a new museum including the Arkitekturmuseet, too, should be built. The strange thing about the ensuing competition was that the architects were allowed to choose the project’s location. This is where the notion of strategy came in: rather than giving in to the temptation of designing a conspicuous building on the waterfront (Jørn Utzon’s Sydney design was still in recent memory), Moneo opted for a building not based on contact with the sea but on familiarity and rapport with the other buildings on the island. This is what led to the halls whose shape is determined by the skylights above. The free-standing nature of most buildings on Skeppsholmen is respected because the museum halls are gathered close to the Tyghuset, an exception on the island because of its 250-meter length, thus reducing its presence on the island. Hence, the museum does not transform the appearance of Skeppsholmen. Instead, the new buildings blend into the island and adapt to its topography until they finally reach sea level, where staff and works of art come and go.  Though built at the same time as the Guggenheim Museum of Bilbao, Moneo’s work is its antithesis: the Moderna Museet and Arkitekturmuseet are a place from which Stockholm’s beauty can be appreciated, not a place vying to be the center of attention.
  

• LOCATION:

  Skeppsholmen Island, Stockholm, Sweden

• CLIENT:

  Statens Fastighetsverk (National Property Board)
  Peter Ohrstedt
  

• PROGRAM:

  Museum

• ARCHITECT:

  Rafael Moneo

• PROJECT TEAM:

  White Coordinator, Ragnar Uppman, principal-in-charge (Associate Architect)
  
  Collaborators:
  Competition:
  Michael Bischoff (Architect)
  Robert Robinowitz (Architect)
  Lucho Marcial (Architect)
  
  Preliminary design:
  Michael Bischoff (Architect)
  
  Design development:
  Belén Moneo (project architect)
  Jeff Brock, (project architect)
  Fernando Iznaola (Architect)
  Ignacio Quemada (Architect)
  Eduardo Belzunce (Architect)
  Max Holst, (Architect on the site)
  
  White Coordinator:
  Björn Norén
  Viljar Päss
  Anna Karin Edlbom
  Magnus Croon
  Mats Anslöv
  Lars-Erik Karlsson
  Louise Masreliez
  
  Interior Design
  Rafael Moneo, Belén Moneo, Jeff Brock (Public spaces)
  Thomas Sandell: Restaurants, libraries, museum shop
  Karen Nyren (Offices)
  

• COLLABORATORS:

  Structural engineer: Tyréns Byggkonsult AB
  Mechanical engineer: Energo AB
  Electrical engineer: WO-Konsult AB
  Lighting engineer: KTH Arkitektur/belysningslära
  Lighting consultant: Fisher Marantz Renfro Stone
  Security: Team TSP Konsult AB
  Fire Security: Brandskyddslaget BOTAB AB
  Acoustics: Ingemanssons Akustik
  Theater consultant: Arteno Arkitektur & Teater
  Models: Juan de Dios Hernández y Jesús Rey
  
  
  

• BUILDER:

  NCC AB

• BUDGET:

  49.100.000 €

• SURFACE AREA:

  Museum of Modern Art 20.000 m2
  Museum of Architecture 6.000 m2
  

• DATE:

  First prize open competition: 1991
  ground breaking: 1994
  Completion: 1997
  Inauguration: 1998
  

• PICTURES:

  © Michael Moran/OTTO