Hilma af Klint Exhibition Space
An architectonic response to the artist's most famous works
2015–2016
Introduction
Snøhetta has designed a proposal for an exhibition space to showcase Hilma af Klint's most significant paintings in Kristallen Kunsthall in Järna, Sweden.
The design of the exhibition space is an architectonic response to Klint's famous work. All the paintings follow the Golden ratio, a method artists use to locate aesthetically pleasing areas to place subjects and distribute weight in paintings.
The shape of the room is inspired by this, creating a non-symmetrical space that is still proportionate in relation to the paintings.
Technical details
Kristallen Foundation
Photo: Mir
Photo: Mir
The four life cycles of human
Hilma af Klint was a Swedish artist and anthroposophist whose paintings were considered a visual representation of complex spiritual ideas, and her work has been exhibited in several countries.
Some of her most famous paintings are ten paintings called “The Great Ten”, which represents the four life cycles of humans: childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age. Snøhetta designed an exhibition space that would be a permanent home to these paintings when they are not exhibited elsewhere.
Photo: Mir
Photo: Mir
Floating in and out of the room
The visitor experience is at the heart of the design, ensuring that all paintings can be viewed from any angle when entering the room. The shape of the space is trapezoidal to create the illusion of smooth edges that appear almost non-existent.
The layout of the room is formed by the shape of Kristallen Art Hall, which is an uneven square. The visitor feels floating in and out of the room by using bright surfaces, soft rounded corners, and removing all doors.
At its highest peak, the room spans eight meters from the floor to the ceiling, and the paintings have been distributed accordingly, based on the differing height of the walls.
Photo: Mir
A new art hub
As the ceiling is made of glass, the exhibition's primary light source is daylight.
To ensure that the light appears pleasant and smooth irrespective of the weather, the glass has been covered with a thin cloth.
The primary objective of the exhibition is to portray Hilma af Klint's paintings but also to make Kristallen a new art hub for art enthusiasts all over the world.