During the afternoon of 7 June, the Royal Institute of Art received the news that a fire had broken out in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts’ premises at Fredsgatan 12. The premises were evacuated and the emergency services soon realised that no one had been injured.
The exhibition, which was due to run until 15 June, occupied the entire building at the time of the fire. After the fire was extinguished on Saturday, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts announced that the building was damaged by soot, smoke and water. The extent of the actual damage to the exhibition therefore remains to be determined.
For the Royal Institute of Art, the fire means that the graduation exhibition that would have been shown until 15 June will not reopen in the Academy’s premises. The Royal Academy of Fine Arts announces on its website that it feels for the students of the Royal Institute of Art whose Graduation Show will come to an abrupt end.
Sanne Kofod Olsen, Vice-Chancellor at the Royal Institute of Art:
– The time that has passed since the opening of this year’s Graduation Show has been just as hectic as we hoped. The exhibition has engaged with all of those who make up the invaluable mix that constitutes an audience – critics, the public, colleagues, friends, family. The reception has been good. Nevertheless, I am saddened to say that the exhibition must close ahead of schedule due to the fire on Saturday. I and everyone at Mejan sympathise with this year’s graduating students and are now committed to keeping the lights shining on them.
The Royal Institute of Art gathered this year’s graduating students on Sunday evening to review the weekend’s events.
The initial assessment that the fire started in an electrical cabinet remains.
For more information on the fire, see the Royal Academy of Fine Arts’ website.