Kiruna Forever — Exhibition

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Kiruna Forever
An exhibition produced by ArkDes, the Swedish Centre for Architecture and Design

2020–21

Kiruna – a city in the northernmost part of Sweden – is experiencing one of the biggest urban transformation projects in recent history. The city is being relocated by three kilometres due to the expansion of the mine around which Kiruna was built. A third of the population must relocate, housing blocks and landmark buildings are being demolished or moved, and a new city is taking shape. But how do you move a city?

Kiruna Forever examines the ongoing relocation of Kiruna featuring over 100 works by architects, urban planners and artists who have transformed the community and addressed the challenges facing the the region from the first industrial settlements, today, and into the future. Putting the relocation of Kiruna into a historical and geographical context, the exhibition reflects on the big questions that such a complex project raises.

The design concept is a visual representation of all the dualities identified when talking about Kiruna and the move. For example: History vs. future, peace vs. destruction, utopia vs. reality and industry vs. nature. The duality concept is aesthetically visualised by a set of different poster duos where images and typography are juxtaposed to demonstrate the two sides that exist in the complex matter of moving an entire city. Furthermore, two contrasting typefaces were used (serif for Swedish, sans serif for English) for the title design and for all other communication which resulted in a useful design system for object labels and in the publication, as the whole exhibition is bilingual.

The fluorescent yellow color was inspired by the safety vests and work wear used by the people working in the mine. It is also the color used when roping off the city with safety tape while moving it. The exhibition signage and area texts were screen printed on moving blankets to further represent the move.

Graphic Design: Magdalena Czarnecki

Graphic Design Assistant: Elin Laghammar

Exhibition Architect: Pernilla Ohrstedt

Exhibition Photography: Erik Lefvander & Johan Dehlin

Curator: Carlos Mínguez Carrasco
Assistant Curator: Sujy Lee
Exhibition Producer: Johanna Fogel
Digital Communication: Justina Hüll