Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Nordic Architecture & Design Special – Sweden
Strömkajen.
Meet Marge
– a team player with a knack for social architecture With a range of prestigious awards and nominations under their belt in addition to a strong justice pathos and expertise in everything from big, complex builds to accessory design, Marge is the contemporary architecture firm that prides itself on an egoless approach to socially conscious design. By Linnea Dunne | Photos: Marge/Johan Fowelin
“It’s quite common in architecture that the firm is named after one of the founders, and it was important for us not to go down that route,” says Susanne Ramel. “Instead, we created a fictitious person – Marge – who we could all get behind. We believe that you can push both idea and execution to another level if you’re working with other people in a strong collaboration. You get to shed light on a 122 | Issue 105 | October 2017
project from many more different angles and end up with a better product – it’s a quality assurance of sorts.” Together with Katarina Grundsell, Pye Aurell Ehrström and Louise Masreliez, Ramel founded Marge in 2002. 15 years on, it is a well-established firm with a range of awards and accolades in addition to a portfolio evidencing both breadth
of expertise and a sincere social pathos. “It’s a complex thing, creating new buildings,” says Pye Aurell Ehrström about the firm’s multi-disciplinary approach. “There’s a lot to consider, a lot of people to bear in mind. That we have a range of different people and skills and can keep questioning each other really is one of our key strengths.” Marge’s portfolio reveals a predilection for social spaces of different kinds – “public spaces you’re allowed to come to and spend time in without necessarily having to buy anything,” Louise Masreliez ponders – and includes a number of libraries, museums and nursing