Insight - Outlook. On its prominent site within an urban park setting, the Art Museum Kalmar acts as an expressive interface between different points of views and several horizontal layers that exist in its Genius Loci. With its four sculptural elements, the museum functions as a connector and mediator between the different elements of context, as there are the archeological filled ground, the adjacent water of the Baltic Sea, the park, the city and the people. A strong connection to the archeological fragments underground is being built up by the specific location of the building that follows the curve of the historic city wall, leading visitors from the entrance into the exhibition areas.

As fragments, the light-snorkel like building elements define a building complex that is to be seen as a composition: this composition stands for the bridging of the site fragments into a complete sculptural and expressive building body. By entering the museum, visitors build up visual relations from the entrance and the entire building with its several outlooks, stretching their views towards the old and the new part of the city, the castle, the park, the waterside etc. The museum structure is developed as a build manifestation of these visual connections - the Insikt – Utsikt. The museum offers an elevated platform that disengages visitors from their common affairs for the moment of their art engagement. Thus the museum‘s elements express frozen moments of diverse, dynamic vista association processes that can be interpreted individually by each person in the building. 

The daylighting and artificial light concept of the exhibit areas allows the flexible use of all exhibition spaces. Each exhibit wing can be exposed to either natural, indirect or artificial light by using the electronically controlled multi-layered louver system provided in each space. For light-sensitive exhibitions, the louver system can be opened during the evening and night hours, displaying the content to the outside of the building. To support the exhibition concept of alteration between intensive art engagement and retreat into the surrounding nature, visitors can exit through the glass facade and louver system onto the balconies.

Competition: 2004

Size: 11,000 SF

Site Development, Architecture: Atelier Jörg Rügemer

Client: City of Kalmar, Sweden