Gathenhielmska Huset
Gathenhielmska Huset
Location
Gothenburg, Sweden
Year
2020 – 2022
Gathenhielmska Huset is one of Gothenburg’s oldest buildings, and it has enormous cultural significance for the city. For many years, however, it was closed to the public – hidden in plain view in the heart of the city. Since 2020 I’ve been involved in the process of breathing new life into Gathenhielmska by transforming the venue into a hub for artistic and cultural activities. Today the venue offers studio spaces for creative practitioners, as well as a varied programme of public events and exhibitions.
As venue manager, my responsibilities have included strategic development, events and cultural projects, financing, social media, website, design work and public speaking, alongside daily coordination and admin. Below you can read more about some of the projects I’ve overseen during my time working in the venue.
Projects
Författarsamtalsserie
In 2021 I organised an author talk series at Gathenhielmska Huset, which featured five prominent Swedish writers. Each talk was filmed and shared online, free of charge. My role involved project management, fundraising, artist research, filming, post-production and marketing.
Artist Residencies
Since 2021 I have overseen a residency scheme for local artists & creative practitioners. This scheme offers people an opportunity to test new methods and develop their practice in the beautiful surroundings of Gathenhielmska Huset. Participating artists have so far included Tilde Hjelm, Sarah Alfarhan and Ida Gudmundsson. Ida’s residency resulted in a site-specific exhibition, En Gång Skog (pictured), which attracted over 800 visitors.
Piratdrottningar & Skattkistor
One of my main aims while working at Gathenhielmska Huset has been to make the venue more accessible for children. In 2021 I worked with child design studio Lekkontoret to develop a guided tour of Gathenhielmska for and by children. You can read more about it here.
Biografen
In 2022 we opened a new multi-purpose room at Gathenhielmska Huset, which functions as a cinema, photo studio, exhibition space and workspace. I was responsible for concept development, creating a design brief, coordinating the project, securing funding and managing the budget.
Gathenhielmska Lekstuga
As part of our work to make Gathenhielmska more accessible to children, we (myself, Lekkontoret and woodwork artist Esbjörn Grip) recently designed & built a lekstuga in the venue’s garden. The Lekstuga was built through collaboration and made to host collaborative processes with children. It is both a public play space and a space for artists & designers to run projects with children.
Stranded Pearls (GIBCA Extended)
In October 2021 I curated and produced a series of exhibitions and installations at Gathenhielmska Huset in connection with GIBCA Extended. The collective programme explored the boundaries between truth and fiction, past and present, and interrogated the role of the author in the writing of history. You can read more about the project here.
Gallery
Children’s workshop in the venue’s garden with design studio Lekkontoret, Spring 2021
A video I made to document the exhibition Sea Treasures pt. 2, by Hanna Norrna and Maja Lund Hvidfeldt
Flag making workshop with design studio Lekkontoret, Autumn 2021
Björn Petersson Kvartett, Spring 2022
During my time at Gathenhielmska I have also co-ordinated large-scale external bookings, such as film projects.
SCREEN, an installation by doma as part of our GIBCA Extended 2021 programme
A video I made to document the exhibition Piratdrottningar och Skattkistor by Lekkontoret
Details from Gathenhielmska Lekstuga, which we built in Winter 2021 as a way to make the venue’s garden more accessible and engaging for children.
Close up of the exhibition Ön by Matilda Cederqvist, which I arranged in the venue’s newly opened Orangery.