David Chipperfield Architects from Berlin won the bid to design the new Nobel Center in Blasieholmen, Stockholm, The Nobel Foundation announced Wednesday.
Chipperfield's slender brass design for the esteemed building beat proposals by Johan Celsing Arkitektkontor and Wingårdh Arkitektkontor. The three finalists were chosen from 12 other shortlisted firms, including OMA of Netherlands, Herzog & de Meuron and Japan's SANAA.
"The jury finds the lightness and openness of the building very appealing and consistent with the Nobel Foundation's explicit ambition to create an open and welcoming Center for the general public," Lars Heikensten, chairman of the competition jury and Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation, said in an official statement.
"We view the winning proposal as a concrete interpretation of the Nobel Prize as Sweden's most important symbol in the world. Stockholm will gain a building - magnificent but without pomp, powerful yet graceful - with qualities like those the City Hall gave the capital a century ago," added Per Wästberg, writer, member of the Swedish Academy, chairman of the Nobel Committee for Literature and one of the members of the competition jury.
The Building
Chipperfield's renderings for the building show a brass façade, glazed flooring and glass ceilings and walls. The ground floor looks almost transparent. The structure also offers opportunities to build an urban park to the southeast.
When the Nobel Foundation first announced the shortlist of architecture firms in March last year, it also revealed its requirements for the new center. The center asserted that the new building will require public rooms for science conferences, exhibitions, meetings and events. A library, shops, a café and a restaurant will also be included.
The jury hopes to work with the architects to add certain refinements to the proposed design. The main focus of the project is to turn the venue into a major Stockholm attraction. Currently, all the Nobel Prize events are held in the Stockholm City Hall.
Architect Speak
"We are extremely excited and honored to have been selected to be the architects for the Nobel Center. We look forward to working together to develop a building that reflects both the values of the Nobel Prize and the high expectations of the citizens of Stockholm," Chipperfield said.
View the video below for renderings of the winning design:
