Context
Norway —one of the Nordic countries
comprising Scandinavia— has a surface area of over 380,000 square kilometers,
with a population of only 5.4 million, making it the least densely populated
European country only after Iceland. Its capital Oslo is located in the more
populous Southern part of the country, at the end of one of Norway’s more than
a thousand fjords. Oslo is Norway’s biggest city, with a population of over
almost 700,000 inhabitants, and is the country’s cultural, economic, and
political center. After having been in Unions with Denmark and Sweden for
almost four hundred years, Norway became a fully autonomous democracy and
independent Kingdom in 1905. Relative political independence on an
international level has been maintained as well, as Norway is not part of the
European Union. As a member of the European Economic Area, the European Free
Trade Organization and the Schengen Information System however, Norway does
sign up to European single market rules. In accordance with these multilateral
agreements, Norway agrees to the freedom of movement of goods, services,
capital, and people through most of Europe, enabling a fruitful relation with
the European Union as its primary partner in trade.
As a country formed of various stones, metals, and minerals, Norway has a long tradition of extracting natural resources. Historically, such industries as cod fishery in the north, Larvikite quarries in the south, pine timber production in the east, and titanium mines in the west have been essential to the country’s economy. It is—however—the 1969 discovery of oil and gas reserves that has produced Norway's unprecedented wealth. Now amounting to a quarter of the country's GDP, the petroleum industry has been the cornerstone of the Norwegian economy for the past few decades. With the government as the majority stakeholder of Equinor, the country’s largest petroleum company, fossil fuel earnings have been instrumental in consolidating Norway’s welfare state. Revenues enter the Government Pension Fund of Norway to “safeguard and build financial wealth” for all Norwegians. Now worth almost the equivalent to a trillion euros, this sovereign wealth fund amounts to more than double the value of the country’s GDP. While the petroleum industry is still an essential pillar supporting Norway’s prosperity, it is anticipated that in the near future the country will move beyond the extraction of oil and gas. A new focal point for future economic development is likely the tourism industry.
Speculating on the idea that tourism does indeed become a new economic focal point for Norway, three locations have been chosen to examine the specificities of landscape, climate, local industry and culture, infrastructure, and more in regards to architecture’s relation to the tourism industry. Bergen, Kvitfjell, and Andøya have been selected to represent three different geological conditions common to the Norwegian landscape—the fjord, the mountain, and the island—and therefore as a particular lens through which Norway is investigated.
Bergen —a fjord-city surrounded by mountains in southern Norway— is a hub for cruise ships, Norwegian media and creative industries, and increasingly cultural institutions. The municipality covers 465 square kilometers, and has around 420,000 inhabitants. In 2018, Bergen Flesland Airport served 6.3 million passengers with its twenty domestic and fifty-three international connections, making it the second busiest airport in the country. Bergen Port serves more than 500,000 passengers a year, making it one of the most popular cruise destinations in Europe. It is the point of departure of the Hurtigruten route, which connects Bergen to cities along the country’s 2,650 km long coastline, all the way up north to Kirkenes close to the Russian border. Bryggen and its Hanseatic commercial buildings in the Vågen harbor were granted UNESCO World Heritage status in 1979. The four contributions related to Bergen’s fjord-city condition – a flagshipstore, an architecture institute, a ministry, and a cruise terminal – will speculate on the role of infrastructures and institutions related to the tourism industry.
A ski resort in Norway’s central mountain area, Kvitjfell is a beloved winter sports destination among Norwegians and foreigners alike. Originally developed for the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, it has since attracted large numbers of second homes for many Oslo residents. The proliferation of these second homes, along with the former Olympic infrastructures still in use for alpine speed events in the World Cup circuit, raises an interesting contrast between the top-down planning of an international leisure infrastructure, and the largely unplanned local residential developments prompted by the favorable conditions of the Norwegian economy and welfare state. This contrast is further highlighted by the spatial configuration of foothill towns supporting the ski resorts. Thus our collective project engages with the adaptation of a winter destination, into new models of scattered developments, and by extension the required transportation networks specific to the area’s geological condition. Sited in Kvitfjell are contributions engaging with the type of a cabin, a catalog house, a train station, and a charging station.
Located within the Arctic Circle—where remoteness meets scenic landscapes—the 489-square kilometer Andøya is the northernmost island of the Vesterålen archipelago and the tenth biggest of Norway’s 50,000 islands. Whale watching has grown to become a major tourist attraction with 50,000 visitors coming in each year. Bleiksoya, an adjacent island, is home to nesting puffins and a variety of birds, and as such is a testament to Norway’s enormous biodiversity. The magical experience of witnessing Aurora Borealis, a phenomenon primarily seen at such high latitudes, has attracted tourism in the dark winter months as well. In addition to its traditional fishing industry and preserved scenic routes, Andøya also boasts an active space center, which is destined to take a key position in the European commercial space race, and take the island’s remoteness even one step further. Ideas of remoteness also underlie the five contributions – a royal palace, an astronomical observatory, a visitor center, a space center, and an itinerant circus – located here.
As a country formed of various stones, metals, and minerals, Norway has a long tradition of extracting natural resources. Historically, such industries as cod fishery in the north, Larvikite quarries in the south, pine timber production in the east, and titanium mines in the west have been essential to the country’s economy. It is—however—the 1969 discovery of oil and gas reserves that has produced Norway's unprecedented wealth. Now amounting to a quarter of the country's GDP, the petroleum industry has been the cornerstone of the Norwegian economy for the past few decades. With the government as the majority stakeholder of Equinor, the country’s largest petroleum company, fossil fuel earnings have been instrumental in consolidating Norway’s welfare state. Revenues enter the Government Pension Fund of Norway to “safeguard and build financial wealth” for all Norwegians. Now worth almost the equivalent to a trillion euros, this sovereign wealth fund amounts to more than double the value of the country’s GDP. While the petroleum industry is still an essential pillar supporting Norway’s prosperity, it is anticipated that in the near future the country will move beyond the extraction of oil and gas. A new focal point for future economic development is likely the tourism industry.
Speculating on the idea that tourism does indeed become a new economic focal point for Norway, three locations have been chosen to examine the specificities of landscape, climate, local industry and culture, infrastructure, and more in regards to architecture’s relation to the tourism industry. Bergen, Kvitfjell, and Andøya have been selected to represent three different geological conditions common to the Norwegian landscape—the fjord, the mountain, and the island—and therefore as a particular lens through which Norway is investigated.
Bergen —a fjord-city surrounded by mountains in southern Norway— is a hub for cruise ships, Norwegian media and creative industries, and increasingly cultural institutions. The municipality covers 465 square kilometers, and has around 420,000 inhabitants. In 2018, Bergen Flesland Airport served 6.3 million passengers with its twenty domestic and fifty-three international connections, making it the second busiest airport in the country. Bergen Port serves more than 500,000 passengers a year, making it one of the most popular cruise destinations in Europe. It is the point of departure of the Hurtigruten route, which connects Bergen to cities along the country’s 2,650 km long coastline, all the way up north to Kirkenes close to the Russian border. Bryggen and its Hanseatic commercial buildings in the Vågen harbor were granted UNESCO World Heritage status in 1979. The four contributions related to Bergen’s fjord-city condition – a flagshipstore, an architecture institute, a ministry, and a cruise terminal – will speculate on the role of infrastructures and institutions related to the tourism industry.
A ski resort in Norway’s central mountain area, Kvitjfell is a beloved winter sports destination among Norwegians and foreigners alike. Originally developed for the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, it has since attracted large numbers of second homes for many Oslo residents. The proliferation of these second homes, along with the former Olympic infrastructures still in use for alpine speed events in the World Cup circuit, raises an interesting contrast between the top-down planning of an international leisure infrastructure, and the largely unplanned local residential developments prompted by the favorable conditions of the Norwegian economy and welfare state. This contrast is further highlighted by the spatial configuration of foothill towns supporting the ski resorts. Thus our collective project engages with the adaptation of a winter destination, into new models of scattered developments, and by extension the required transportation networks specific to the area’s geological condition. Sited in Kvitfjell are contributions engaging with the type of a cabin, a catalog house, a train station, and a charging station.
Located within the Arctic Circle—where remoteness meets scenic landscapes—the 489-square kilometer Andøya is the northernmost island of the Vesterålen archipelago and the tenth biggest of Norway’s 50,000 islands. Whale watching has grown to become a major tourist attraction with 50,000 visitors coming in each year. Bleiksoya, an adjacent island, is home to nesting puffins and a variety of birds, and as such is a testament to Norway’s enormous biodiversity. The magical experience of witnessing Aurora Borealis, a phenomenon primarily seen at such high latitudes, has attracted tourism in the dark winter months as well. In addition to its traditional fishing industry and preserved scenic routes, Andøya also boasts an active space center, which is destined to take a key position in the European commercial space race, and take the island’s remoteness even one step further. Ideas of remoteness also underlie the five contributions – a royal palace, an astronomical observatory, a visitor center, a space center, and an itinerant circus – located here.