Vikingr exhibition
Historical Artifacts in a Contemporary Format
2017–2019
Introduction
Snøhetta has developed the exhibition design, visual profile, and a book for the "Víkingr” exhibition at the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo. The exhibition displays the most important objects from the museum's unparalleled collection of Viking artifacts, including the world's only existing Viking helmet. The Víkingr exhibition presents historical objects in a minimal and contemporary format and will be semi-permanent, pending the renovation of the Viking Ship Museum at Bygdøy.
The idea behind the exhibition design was to give visitors the opportunity to experience the objects as objectively and unobstructed as possible from all sides. Inviting the visitors to experience the impressive level of detail, providing clarity and understanding of the relics from our past.
Technical details
The objects are exhibited through 19 tall glass vitrines custom-made for the exhibition, allowing the visitor to see the objects from all angles. By presenting fewer objects and giving them space to be studied, the exhibition aims to bring the objects closer to the visitor, encouraging them to explore and appreciate the high level of craftsmanship and detail.
The contrast between the beautiful, handcrafted objects and their often violent history lends an interesting dynamic to the exhibition. The objects' elegant presentation and the pared-down aesthetics of the surroundings leave room for contemplation and learning. The exhibition displays what's known as the world's only existing Viking helmet, found on the Gjermundbu Farm in Buskerud, Norway.
The museum building is one of Norway's finest examples of the Art Nouveau style, and the exhibition room has been restored in light colors accompanied by warm oak parquet flooring.
As a contrast to the clean contemporary visual identity, all the exhibition wall texts are hand painted. The idea is that the handprinted letters' perfect imperfection points to the handmade precision of the objects and that the actual time it takes to paint the letters adds quality to the experience. To avoid visual interference to the experience, all the vitrine texts are placed on the back side of the plinths.
