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The age of ‘Re’

Sanne Kofod Olsen, Vice-Chancellor. Photo: Ulrik Jantzen

Renovation, restoration, reproduction, representation, refinement, removal, rethinking, reimagining, reconsideration, reuse, resupply, refurbishment, reshaping, regeneration…

Just before the summer of 2024, an extensive and long-awaited refurbishment of parts of the Royal Institute of Art (KKH) began. Much has happened since then. Among many changes, the workshop areas were improved; new spaces awaited some, while others were updated, and the studios were refurbished, now ready for the new academic year. However, other tasks were not yet completed at the beginning of the school year, for example, moving students’ belongings back to the studios and putting everything in place in the workshops. It is a detailed, painstaking job.

The refurbishment results from long-term planning in collaboration with our landlord, Statens Fastighetsverk. The aim is to refurbish, maintain, and improve the conditions of our workshops, studios, classrooms, offices, and public spaces, and to create more appropriate uses of space—both in terms of working conditions and square meters. We will become smaller, thus fostering closer relationships among us. It will be easier to collaborate across workshop areas, laying the foundation for fruitful cooperation along the corridors. We will operate more focused.  

The next step is the refurbishment of Kasern III, which, in addition to studio and exhibition spaces, will house offices, classrooms, and public areas, as well as a brand-new library. This exciting part of the project is set to be completed by late summer 2025.

Kasern III constitutes a large part of KKH’s total area, and its absence has led us to explore alternative, but interesting, solutions for premises. Therefore, for this academic year, our one-year further education courses are spread across satellite locations—Hägerstensåsen’s Medborgarhus and our permanent satellite in Gröndal, south of Stockholm. Our courses in restoration art are moving further afield to Malmö, in a productive collaboration with the municipality. Our five-year Fine Arts program, along with its students, remains on Skeppsholmen, alongside teachers, technical staff, and administrative personnel.

It is a time of change, to say the least. Like all higher education institutions in Sweden, we are affected by what is happening in society and the world at large. In every way does KKH adapt its operations to these changes—not least to the shifting economic conditions. As a result, KKH’s physical space is decreasing without necessarily becoming smaller. In these times, we need to protect what we have and make better use of what we have built up over the years—our unique, specialised skills, and our fantastic workshops and premises.

To maintain the high quality of education that has characterised KKH since its founding, nearly 290 years ago, it is essential to continue pursuing development and adaptation. This does not mean giving in, nor does it mean giving up.Together, we are building a new foundation, based on thoughtful and sustainable solutions.

For example, we look at how we act in our daily operations. We work through the extensive refurbishment process together, so that when it is complete, we will have created exciting conditions for joint, collaborative efforts. This new reality has already sparked the important work of developing a new vision and strategy for the institute, a process that involves both staff and students.

KKH has been providing education in art and architecture since 1735. It is a very long time, and, put differently, we are used to change. Historically, our programs have constantly evolved, responding to the times that they were part of. Like the character Orlando in Virginia Woolf’s novel of the same name, KKH’s journeys through time is a state we must accept and embrace, while also insisting on the creative, questioning, critical, and poetic nature of fine arts and our specialised interpretation of architecture.

Art and architecture are vital, not just to us, but to everyone.

We, who are in this place, here and now, are fellow travelers on a small part of this long journey for the institute, for society, and for culture, where art and architecture are negotiated, adjusted, and reflected upon—where new and old expressions mix with the dynamics of time.

Renovate, restore, reproduce, represent, refine, remove, rethink, reimagine, reconsider, reuse, resupply, refurbish, reshape, regenerate!

Sanne Kofod Olsen