Stairs with evening sun and a unique-looking pavilion are among the features of Marge’s design at Sergelhuset, where the task has been to revitalise a previously rough and almost forgotten part of the very heart of Stockholm.
Architecture that gives something back With a portfolio packed full of awards and accolades and a number of highly noteworthy projects in the bag, Marge is the Stockholm-based architecture firm that joins the past with the future through attention to detail and respect for place. By Linnea Dunne | Photos: Johan Fowelin
“Sustainability is crucial to us. The least possible energy is used when buildings or environments last, and in this context, the architectural quality and social interaction are decisive,” starts Katarina Grundsell of Marge, a contemporary architecture firm she set up with her three co-founders: Pye Aurell Ehrström, Louise Masreliez and Susanne Ramel. “We’re working together for 18 years now, and collaboration has always been one 92 | Issue 129 | October 2019
of our key values,” she continues. “The starting point for any project must be to understand the space and its programme. Yes, the design is crucial, and subtle architecture with a twist is probably characteristic to Marge – but the people always come first. For us, collaboration is a way to get one step further.” But how do you design buildings that last in a world that’s changing so quickly? “The only thing we know is that noth-
ing will be as we expect,” Grundsell laughs. “But we can look at the buildings that have stood the test of time and see that there are certain details and qualities they share, which are crucial to the experience of the quality of the urban space – the detail that reveals something about the entirety.”
Revitalising the heart of Stockholm And attention to detail is something Marge has plenty of, evidenced not least by the plans for the new Sergelhuset, an ongoing project, commissioned by Vasakronan, that aims to revitalise a previously rough and almost forgotten part of the very heart of Stockholm, right by the famous Sergels torg square. Central